Revenge of the Sith AU
by Katana-Geldar
Summary: Seven years following the Battle of Imbroglio, the Clone Wars is nearing an end. Yet not all is as it seems as Anakin disocvers when he returns to Coruscant with ObiWan.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Revenge of the Sith AU, sequel to AOTC AU and TPM AU

**Author: ** KatanaGeldar

**Genre: **Alternate Universe

**Characters: ** Padmé Naberrie, Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Palpatine/Sidious, Dooku/Tyrannus, Mace Windu, Yoda, Bail Organa, Mon Mothma and OCs Danta Pela, Renust Nju/Typhon, Kuan Yin Nevu and a few others… ;)

**Timeline: **17 BBY

**Summary:** After seven years the Clone Wars are starting to come to some sort of conclusion following the capture of Chancellor Palpatine by the leader of the Separatist droid army, General Grievous. Yet even with the war growing in favour of the Republic, the Sith emerge from within to exact their devastating revenge.

**Disclaimer:** Star Wars is not mine; I just like to write with it. The original characters are my own creations.

**Notes:** Like AOTC AU before this ROTS AU will follow a remarkably different arc given what's happened earlier. This also incorporates some elements I've had in mind since May 19 last year, well before I had developed the idea of Padmé as a Jedi. There will ieventually/i be a sequel but don't hold yer breath.

BTW, I **highly recommend** you read AOTC AU first if you have not already. There is a crucial plot point revealed at the end of the story that is discussed here in the very beginning. You have been warned.

Thanks must go to LeiaNaberrie and others for sounding out some of the political problems with this AU and how they might be fixed, ViceroyNuteGunray for putting up with me talking about nothing else, several non-JCers that gave me quite a few ideas on the specifics of how certain scenes should play out and to my readers (you know who you are!) some who have been here since the very beginning, MTFBWYA

_When the time grows dark, hope must shine brighter._ – Padmé Amidala Skywalker, 'Dark Rendezvous'

He never thought it could have happened, but given what Anakin had seen so far in the Clone Wars it should have been expected. After months in the Outer-Rim, he and Obi-Wan had been called back to the Core as a result of the Separatist's surprise attack on Coruscant. Yet it was not this that made Anakin nervous, what made him work the controls of his starfighter with a fervent urgency.

Chancellor Palpatine had been kidnapped by none other than the leader of the droid army, the dreaded half-droid General Grievous. As much as Obi-Wan tried to convince him otherwise, Anakin blamed himself, mostly for the fact of not being there.

Yet this was not on his mind as he executed his starfighter with the phenomenal skill and dexterity he was renowned for. Behind the controls was the never-ending feeling of the present. The fact that the next moment was dictated by the actions in the one now, and a mistake could mean it was the last. And not just his life, a mistake could cost the life of someone he cared about. Like the Chancellor, or Obi-Wan.

"I don't like the looks of this," came Obi-Wan's voice over the comlink. A voice that made Anakin smile.

They had rounded the last star destroyer and were in full view of the battle above the capital world of the Republic, even Anakin was distracted by the sheer spectacle of it. The many, many, _many_ droid starfighters as well as the Federation droid control ships and the long cruisers engaging with the Republic bulk craft. It was the stuff of his nightmares, it could bring the end to everything he knew and cared about.

But the distraction was merely momentary. After all they had a job to do, didn't they?

"There's no droid that can out-fly you, Master," Anakin said as they dived low above the red hull of the capital ship, "and there's no other way to get to the Chancellor."

_Master_. Even though he had passed the Jedi trials quite some time ago the word slipped out now and then. Now their relationship was no longer Master and Padawan, more like Jedi Knight to Council member and even more importantly _friends_.

Anakin knew there was no one better he could trust than Obi-Wan, he had saved his life numerous times during the war and Obi-Wan had returned the favour more than once. On several occasions, he had referred to his former Master as 'the father he had never had'. Which said a lot, even though it was only a small part of their continued partnership.

Yet this was not all that had changed from the war, Anakin's appearance spoke for itself. He wore his hair long about his ears and down the back of his neck yet remained clean-shaven. He had a scar above and below his right eye which was more a friendly reminder to keep up with his lightsaber practise…all this on the surface yet it revealed more. There was the unimpeded confidence he had in his abilities, more so since he stopped being Obi-Wan's Padawan learner. He had discovered a few things on his own, learnt things that Obi-Wan had not even hinted at.

But despite all this there was Padmé, the almost pathetic hope that someday things would change between them. There would come a time when they would meet on his terms, and she would be as open with him as he wanted to be with her.

"Droid fighters on your right," Obi-Wan informed him crisply.

"This is where the fun begins," Anakin said, grinning as he started firing at the departing droids. "I have you now!"

The last of the droids went into a steep dive with Anakin following, firing rapidly as he descended under the belly of a star destroyer where several more were lying in wait.

"Pull up, Anakin! Pull up!" was Obi-Wan's anxious plea over the comlink, his red star fighter was just behind Anakin's.

"No, there's no time." Anakin increased his speed to the maximum. "Artoo, re-route all power to the forward shields on my signal."

R2-D2—the same faithful astromech droid that had served Senator Nalanda—tittered a rebuttal but knew better than to object further. Anakin had the droid on an extended loan from Danta Pela, something he found quite useful given Artoo's unusual resourcefulness.

The fighters neared, gathered under the prow of the vast capital ship. Any moment now…

"Do it now!" he ordered. The droids fired on him at once, their shots rebounded and Anakin flew through the fireball to safety, with Obi-Wan following him.

"Anything else crazy to do today, Anakin?" Obi-Wan asked dryly as they rejoined the squadron.

"Did you say something once about if droids could think?" Anakin added in return. The tactics he had just faced startled him. Were the droids getting smarter? _That_ was a worry.

Artoo apparently had a problem with this, the translation of it appeared on Anakin's readouts.

"Yes, Artoo," Anakin said patiently. "I know you're a lot smarter than those droids, even if Threepio doesn't give you credit for it."

R2-D2 made a rude noise in response to the protocol droid's name but said nothing more. Whatever Artoo had said, Anakin was probably thinking along the same lines. He had left C-3PO in the Temple where he was put to use in encryption, better for the stuffy droid to be out of harms way.

Yet what happened the next moment captured Anakin's full attention.

"Missiles," he murmured, recognising the tell-tale blue streak they left as they went.

"Let them pass between us," Obi-Wan replied as if it were a matter of course.

On Obi-Wan's signal the squadron dispersed, several of the missiles went wide exploding into the hull of the capital ships. Yet some of his pilots weren't as lucky, he heard their death-screams over the comlink as their crafts exploded…one, then another, and a third…cursing himself and what had happened.

_Hold on_, said a strong voice at the back of his mind, _I still have to get to the Chancellor_.

Yet it suddenly became much worse.

"I'm hit!" Obi-Wan announced. One of the missiles had detonated behind him and the shrapnel was attaching itself to his craft. Buzz droids, small spherical droids that were a nightmare for pilots, specifically designed to disable a starfighter mid-flight.

Anakin saw all this and more as he diverted his course and went after Obi-Wan.

"Anakin, what are you doing?" Obi-Wan roared.

"Saving you," Anakin replied with characteristic casualness. "Someone has to do it."

"Anakin, the mission…the Chancellor!" His voice was becoming rather scrambled. "Get back there, I'm running out of tricks here!"

"I'm not leaving without you, Master." How many times had this happened, when Obi-Wan had gotten into difficult and he had risked everything to save him? Anakin counted at least ten occasions, though there were probably more.

----------------------------

_What does he think he's doing?_ Obi-Wan frowned as he noticed Anakin's approach. Yet as much as it annoyed him for Anakin to jeopardise the mission in this way, it was a comforting thought to see his former apprentice to go to such lengths for him.

"I'm losing power," he told Anakin, reading the rest of his droid's garbled readout before the astromech's dome was cut off by the buzz droids. "Blast," he swore, feeling the controls lessening.

"Hold still so I can get a clear shot," Anakin said, yet there was little Obi-Wan could do to control his starfighter.

He shot forward in the cockpit bashing his head against the viewport as one of Anakin's blasts caught the top of his cockpit. "In the name of—" He was cut off by another shot, this time in the rear. "Anakin, careful with what you're doing! I'm on your side, remember?"

"Right, bad idea," Anakin agreed, the yellow starfighter turning to approach him from the front.

----------------------------

The droids were well into Obi-Wan's ship now and Anakin could see that the Jedi was rapidly losing control. He made a pass close to Obi-Wan's ship, scraping off some of the droids with the edge of one of his S-foils. Yet one of the droids caught and climbed up onto the wing.

"Not good," he muttered, Artoo was on the other wing and couldn't blast him.

"What's going on?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Nothing, Master," Anakin lied, moving his starfighter from side to side to try and throw off the droid. "Just a small problem."

"Small problem?" The erratic nature of Anakin's starfighter clearly proved otherwise.

Yet the droid finally managed to slide off just as several quick blasts destroyed the last of the buzz droids on Obi-Wan's.

"Good shooting," said Obi-Wan.

"It wasn't me!" Anakin insisted.

"But who, then—"

"Hi there," said a familiar female voice over the comlink. "Is it too late to drop by?"

The voice made Anakin start. "Padmé?"

----------------------------

"Yes, it's me." Padmé turned her green starfighter to fall in line behind Anakin. "There's no time for anything else. I heard you say something about a mission, Obi-Wan?"

"Yes, the Chancellor," Anakin replied before Obi-Wan could. "He's on Grievous's ship, it's dead ahead."

"The great big one with all the vulture droids?" Padmé asked.

"That's the one."

It was pure chance—or perhaps the way of the Force—that Padmé was there at all. She had been returning a delicate extraction mission in the Outer-Rim when she had received word of the attack. Yet there was a lot behind her tone of voice and the cool, methodical way she flew her fighter than at first appearance. She no longer smiled as much as she used to, she somehow kept herself apart for some reason. It all had to do with the fact she had a mechanical right hand instead of a real one of flesh and bone. She now wore matching elbow-length gloves on both her hands, partly to avoid awkward questions and partly to hide it from herself.

The secret she carried, the secret that the Jedi Master Renust Nju was in fact a Sith Lord named Darth Typhon, a secret she could relate to no one as it would be her word against his. How had this impacted the war, the fact that the Sith had such unprecedented insight into the Jedi Order? She had come close to mentioning it on more than one occasion, but was held back by the fact she wouldn't be believed.

----------------------------

Anakin could not help but smile as they re-joined the squadron. It was a surprise—but a welcome one—to have Padmé alongside him when he and Obi-Wan went to rescue Chancellor Palpatine. Perhaps having her along would swing things greater in their favour. And perhaps…no, it wasn't possible and he dismissed the thought immediately.

It had been six standard months since he had seen Padmé, and more than four years since he had had a proper conversation with her. That had had been at the peace talks on Avingnon, and there had not been much time while they were there to do anything other than what they were assigned to.

As much as it hurt him not to be open and honest with Padmé about his feelings for her—feelings which had never abated or lessened during the war—he would do what she said. He couldn't walk away as she had suggested, but he could give the impression he had. Anakin was willing to play by the rules Padmé had set up until she said they could start an entirely new game of his own choosing. This was a thought that kept him moving, a hoped-for pleasure if but a remote one.

"This is going to be tight," he said to Obi-Wan, the squadron were exchanging fire near the open hangar of the ship. Yet the shields were still up, and near the generator several turbolasers was still engaging fire.

"I'll take the tower, Red Leader," said the Twi'lek pilot.

Anakin balked at this. "No, I'll handle—"

"No, no!" Obi-Wan broke in calmly. "They are doing their job so we can do ours. I'm going in, cover me."

"I'm behind you," he heard Padmé say.

The shield generator blew, and the fighter that destroyed it followed. Anakin felt the loss through the Force, but did not let the feeling stay his actions. He let it strengthen them.

The door to the hangar was closing rapidly, Anakin pushed his thrusters all the way forward.

"I've got a very bad feeling about this," he muttered as his starfighter streaked through the closing door with Obi-Wan and Padmé behind him.

----------------------------

Quickly, Anakin reduced his speed as he skidded across the floor. A moment later he ejected himself and Artoo from the craft, coming to land near the battledroids that quickly clustered around him. It took another moment to clean up the droids, and when this was done Obi-Wan and Padmé were there to help him with the others that had scuttled over to join the fight.

"Artoo, locate the Chancellor," Anakin ordered as the little droid trundled up. "The ship's computer."

By the time the last of the battledroids were spare parts at their feet R2-D2 was projecting a hologram of the ship, isolating a certain point at the very top.

"There's the Chancellor's signal," Padmé said as she shut off her lightsaber. "The observation platform."

The image changed the show Chancellor Palpatine shackled to a chair, Anakin could feel his anger rising. If Grievous had _hurt_ him, if Grievous had _touched_ him…

"That's the General's quarters," Obi-Wan said with a frown. "Any sign of Grievous?"

The image swivelled around the room, there did not appear to be any sign of the droid general. But this did not mean their approach would be easy.

"Hmm." Obi-Wan stroked his beard thoughtfully. "What about guards?"

From what they could see from the hologram their appeared to be none.

"No guards?" Anakin asked. "But that doesn't make sense!"

"Of course it does," Padmé replied quietly. "It's a trap, a very convincing one."

"So what's the next step?" Anakin asked in exasperation.

Obi-Wan smiled. "Spring the trap."

"Well, there's only one thing to do then," Anakin replied, walking off with the other two following. For a moment, Artoo followed. "No Artoo," he told the little droid as he glanced back. "You need to stay here."

The little droid protested at this, chirping and humming softly.

"Here." Padmé threw Artoo her comlink, the droid caught it with a grappling arm.

"Wait for orders," Obi-Wan added as they left the hangar. "We might need you later."

This final remark was somewhat reassuring to Artoo, the little droid retreated into the shadows to wait.


	2. Chapter 2

On the bridge of his flagship, the _Invisible Hand_, Grievous surveyed his crew. Aside from the battledroids there were his own guards and the Neimoidian captain who was about as useful as a battledroid and as stupid.

Yet they were all he had, and would obey his orders without hesitation and not just due to his leadership of the droid army. Grievous was formidable in how own right and to cross him might mean your last action. He gave no quarter nor mercy for he knew neither, and incompetence was something he could not tolerate.

Yet even his appearance inspire this, he was often shown on the Republic's Holonet as an unforgiving, uncompromising monster. And not just a monster, a _machine_. Grievous had once been living, had limbs and flesh and blood like any other lifeform until a speeder crash had imprisoned him in this durasteel frame.

Instead of a face he had a menacing mask with cold, cruel eyes that peered from underneath the metal frame. Instead of a body he had a casing of metal, two long arms that could be split for combat, and a steel rib cage that enclosed the last of his internal organs.

But his voice, like the sound of rasping metal was perhaps his most fearsome weapon. It made beings do his bidding, even those who considered themselves to be above him like Viceroy Gunray. And he liked it, it was a power he had never had when he had been alive.

"What is our situation?" he asked the Neimoidian captain, strutting over to stand above him.

"General…uh…Jedi have landed in our entry bay," the nervous Neimoidian stammered.

"Excellent, just as Count Dooku predicted," Grievous said. "Kenobi and Skywalker will soon be in my trap."

"Um…there are three Jedi," the Neimoidian said sheepishly.

"_Three_ Jedi?" The droid general turned back. "Let me see them!" he thundered.

The captain shakily compiled, bringing up the hologram. Sure enough Kenobi and Skywalker were there, but there was a third Jedi with them. A female Jedi that Grievous couldn't identify. _Where has she come from?_ Grievous thought _What is she doing here?_

Yet there was no need to delay his plan, what did it matter that another Jedi was there? All of them would soon be dead and he would have three more lightsabers to add to his collection.

All he had to do was wait.

----------------------------

For some reason it appeared entirely _too_ easy. The elevators were up ahead and so far they had not met any resistance. They hadn't actually seen _anyone_, which disturbed Obi-Wan as he would have preferred to _know_ what was ahead.

Anakin was not thinking about the mission as much as he should have been, the unexpected fact that Padmé was here changed things considerably. And not just on the part of the mission, but the hope for something else. Had Padmé changed her mind? She didn't seem so, but perhaps that was because Obi-Wan was there.

Then a door either side of them opened and four magna guards walked up to them, followed closely by six destroyer droids.

"General Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker," the droid completely ignored Padmé, "the General is expecting you."

"We are here to rescue the Chancellor," Anakin challenged, "not join him."

"You will find escape quite impossible," the droid said as the Jedi were quickly surrounded.

"Remember Anakin, rescue, not mayhem," Obi-Wan reminded him. "We can blow the ship up _after_ we've got the Chancellor."

"Right," Anakin agreed, he made a nod to Padmé and the three of them ignited their lightsabers.

The droids fired while the guards stepped in with their staffs crackling, yet the bolts were deflected quickly as the Jedi cut a circle around them in the floor and went down to the floor below.

----------------------------

Immediately below them was a generator room, pipes and electric cables were overhead. Yet these were showing signs of wear and tear by the constant bombardment from space. A strong-smelling clear liquid began to leak from the pipes, spilling into the back of the room.

Obi-Wan identified the liquid instantly.

"It's fuel, that's why they stopped shooting," he said, glancing around the room. "The slightest spark will send the ship into oblivion."

"Well, we're safe for now," Anakin said, staring towards the far end of the room and running off.

"If your idea of 'safe is the same as 'rescue' Anakin, we're all in trouble," Padmé replied as she and Obi-Wan followed him through the fuel.

As they ran more explosions rocked the ship, cracking more pipes and soon the liquid was waist deep. Eventually they had to swim, with the ceiling getting nearer and the sounds of doors closing around them it was getting close.

"Their sealing this section off," Anakin said, scanning above him for a way out.

"Look!" Padmé nodded back to where they had come from. "Six droids coming this way."

"Keep going!" Obi-Wan urged. "There must be vents somewhere!"

But the droids were not their only worry, at the far end Padmé could see live electrical cables dangerously close to the fuel. If they touched it the fuel would ignite, and…she didn't continue that thought, there was too much at stake right now.

"I've found our escape hatch!" Anakin announced, pulling away the soft metal to reveal a small hole.

"You're crazy, Anakin!" Obi-Wan rebuked. "We'll never get through that, it's too small!"

"Only in your mind, Master," Anakin joked, ripping away the side of the hole to reveal space big enough for them to fit through.

"Quick, they're closer!" Padmé urged, swimming up behind Anakin and following him through the vent, Obi-Wan came last of all as the droids were upon them.

Using their liquid cable launchers they managed to climb up towards another hatch that Anakin had spotted. He removed the covering with his lightsaber then scrambled through as the blaster bolts started flying.

The liquid was starting to seep through the hole in the bottom of the shaft when Padmé slipped through after Obi-Wan. Anakin quickly replaced the cover and sealed it with his lightsaber.

"That'll never hold," Obi-Wan said, shaking his head.

"It will," Anakin told him. "The blast will break the hull but this side's pressurised."

"You still have much to learn, Anakin," his former Master insisted.

Another explosion rocked the ship, thundering beneath their feet. The sound of it roared up to the sealed hatch. But while the metal bulged considerably, it remained whole.

"All right, all right, you win! I still have much to learn," Obi-Wan conceded. "Let's go!"

----------------------------

Inside a turbolift pod near the top of the ship, Count Dooku watched a series of hologrammic images. The pod shuddered and the lights flickered as the ship came again and again under fire.

From where he sat he watched the Jedi pick their way across the ship towards him. Yet it wasn't Kenobi and Skywalker that had attracted his attention, their being here was not only _expected_ but part of the plan. But Padmé Naberrie, what was she doing here? Somehow she had managed to find herself at the centre of the schemes of the Sith and walk away relatively unscathed. The artificial hand that was reportedly of his doing was the only mark she carried for her crimes.

This was why his instructions had changed, she could be allowed to interfere no more. She and Kenobi would be killed and Skywalker would be taken over onto the side of the Sith. Their remained no further objectives.

"My lord?" Grievous from the bridge sounded noticeably concerned.

"Yes?" Dooku said into the comlink, he despised Grievous even though he admitted there were uses for the creature. And it was almost time for that use to terminate.

"Damage to the ship is becoming severe," the droid general said. "Thirty percent of our automated weapons systems are down, and we may soon lose hyperspace capacity."

"Sound the retreat for the entire force," Dooku ordered. "Prepare the ship for jump, once the Jedi are dead I will join you on the bridge."

"As you command," assented the droid general. "Grievous out."

"Indeed you are, you vile creature," Dooku muttered to the dead comlink. "Out of luck and out of time."

----------------------------

After dealing with several more droids they managed to find another elevator, yet midway through their journey it shuddered to a stop.

"Did you press the stop button?" Anakin asked Padmé who was standing next to the control panel.

"No, I didn't it just—" The realisation hit them all at the same time. Grievous was trying to trap them before they even got to the Chancellor.

"Well, there's more than one way out of here," Anakin said, igniting his lightsaber. At the same time Padmé opened the control panel and tried to get it working from that way.

"We don't want to get out, we want to get moving," Obi-Wan said indignantly, he got out his comlink. "Artoo? Artoo do you copy?" There was a titter as the droid answered. "Activate elevator…"

Padmé shut the control panel for a moment and glanced at the cover. "Eleven thirty-eight," she told him.

Obi-Wan repeated the number just as Anakin started to cut a hole in the ceiling.

----------------------------

Obi-Wan never realised how much his voice actually carried, but it was very noticeable to R2-D2 as he hid from the battledroids that were combing the hangar. He retreated a little more into the shadows as the droid's continued their search.

----------------------------

"Artoo?" He knew the droid was listening but why didn't he do anything? He glanced up as Anakin climbed through the hole in the ceiling. "Artoo, what are you doing? We have work to do!"

----------------------------

"Artoo switch on the comlink!" said Obi-Wan's loud voice as it echoed through the hangar. "Artoo, can you hear me? Artoo!"

The astromech pulled the comlink back inside his metal body, but that didn't block the shouts coming from within. Yet he still carried out the order, linking up to a computer terminal and activating the elevator.

----------------------------

Suddenly the elevator plummeted, Obi-Wan and Padmé felt it as they were inside but it was particularly significant to Anakin. He desperately clung to a series of wires on the outside of a closed door and tried to get a steadier handhold.

The elevator continued to drop away from him, faster and faster.

----------------------------

"Stop, stop!" Obi-Wan barked into the comlink, at the panel Padmé tried to do something about their descent, but there was nothing she could do. "Artoo, we need to be going up! Artoo?"

----------------------------

Anakin managed to get a handhold on the bottom of one of the doors, but the door was soon prised open and he was looking at the feet of battledroids.

"Hands up, Jedi," one of them said as they pointed

_My hands_ are_ up! _ Anakin thought with exasperation, looking down to see if the elevator was closer. It wasn't and from the sound it was getting further and further away.

----------------------------

"Artoo? Artoo?" Obi-Wan's voice again attracted the attention of the battledroids. At first they had dismissed it, yet the sound was unmistakable now.

"Artoo? Artoo, do you copy?" Obi-Wan said. "We need to be going _up_, not down!"

----------------------------

"Artoo? Artoo? Artoo, do you copy?" Obi-Wan said frantically, he had to hold on as the elevator increased speed. How many floors did they have left to go? He glanced at Padmé and she shrugged, holding on herself.

"Artoo?" he said again. "Stop, Artoo! We need to go up, stop! Stop!"

The elevator stopped suddenly and they both fell to the floor.

----------------------------

"Hey you!" said the battledroid when it spotted Artoo. "What are you doing?"

The little droid ignored him, giving another command to the computer so the elevator could go up.

----------------------------

As Obi-Wan got to his feet, he could feel the elevator ascend.

"That's better," he said into the comlink, then pocketed it. Sooner or later Anakin would join them—from wherever they had left him—and they could get the Chancellor with hopefully nothing else in their way.

----------------------------

The two battledroids confronted R2-D2, laughing as the little droid made rude noises at them.

"Stupid little astro droid," one of them said.

Yet Artoo was to prove anything but, he trundled away from them spraying oil as he did then ignited his rockets and the droids ignited. Twittering softly to himself, Artoo flew out of harms way.

----------------------------

From the sound of it Anakin could tell the elevator was accelerating rapidly towards him. He counted softly then flipped back onto the top, diving down the hole to come face-to-face with Obi-Wan's lightsaber.

"Oh, it's you." Obi-Wan deactivated his weapon.

"What kept you?" Anakin asked.

"Well Artoo has been—" Obi-Wan started but Anakin was immediately on the defensive.

"Hey, no loose wire jokes!" he rebuked.

"I didn't say anything!" Obi-Wan said, holding up his hands in submission.

"He's doing his best," Anakin continued.

"Did I say something?" Obi-Wan asked, his mouth twitching at the corners.

Padmé watched the exchange with smile, seeing this reminded her of seven years before when Anakin had seemed insistent to display his piloting skills in the speeder chase above Coruscant. Back then there had been no war, no darkness…and no secret. Yet it was no longer possible to remember back then without a twinge of what she knew now.


	3. Chapter 3

Finally they arrived at the top of the _Invisible Hand_, yet there was the constant reminder of the battle that raged around them. Aside from the occasional flashes and fireballs there were distinct shudders and at times it was hard to keep one's footing.

Opposite the elevator was a balcony, a set of stairs either side of it. Down this and with his back to the window was Chancellor Palpatine, he sat in a heavy chair with his hands shackled to the arms. He smiled softly at their approach, yet that small smile did little to placate the sheer terror on his face.

_What has Dooku _done_ to him?_ Anakin thought in anger, _and where is that coward Grievous? When I find him…_

"Thank goodness you've arrived," Palpatine said breathlessly.

"Chancellor." Obi-Wan inclined his head respectfully, yet showed no emotion.

"Are you all right, Your Excellency?" Anakin asked urgently.

"Anakin, look out!" Palpatine pleaded. "_Behind_ you!"

Padmé nudged him and they all turned to see Dooku standing on the balcony, three super battledroids either side of him.

"Get help!" Palpatine hissed. "You're no match for him! He's a Sith Lord!"

"Not to worry, Chancellor," Obi-Wan reassured, giving Palpatine a confident smile. "Sith Lords are our speciality."

"Skywalker, Kenobi," Dooku nodded to each of them and then turned to Padmé. "And I believe we have met."

Padmé didn't answer, it was all part of the deception Renust Nju had concocted yet she did not protest.

"You're not going to get away with this, Dooku," Anakin said, stepping protectively beside Padmé. "We're not going to let you escape. Not this time."

"Escape?" The idea seemed absurd to Dooku, he laughed. "If I wanted to escape I could have taken the Chancellor outsystem hours ago. I have better things to do than wait for you to show up to attempt a rescue."

"This is a little more than an attempt," Obi-Wan challenged.

"And a little less than a rescue," Dooku returned, jumping from the balcony to stand before them. He brought out his hand from beneath his cloak and summoned his lightsaber, the red blade ignited and was brought into a salute position. "Let's make this quick, shall we? We wouldn't want to make a mess of things in front of the Chancellor."

"I don't think so," Anakin said, activating his lightsaber and Obi-Wan and Padmé followed his lead. They discarded their cloaks and formed a line before Dooku, Padmé in the middle and Anakin and Obi-Wan either side of her.

"I have been looking forward to this," Dooku said, smiling at Anakin in a way that seemed to enrage him.

"My powers have doubled since last we met," Anakin retorted, staring Dooku down.

"Excellent," Dooku replied. "Twice the pride, double the fall."

"Surrender," Obi-Wan said, his tone as sharp as his weapon. "You will be given no further chance."

Dooku chuckled. "Unless one of you happens to be carrying Yoda in your pocket, I hardly think I shall need one."

The ship shuddered suddenly, the floor swaying underneath them and Dooku decided the time had come. He glanced quickly over his shoulder to distract then attacked, the three Jedi moving on him at once.

Padmé brought her green lightsaber up to cross with the two blue blades. Though it was the same colour as her old one that she had lost on Imbroglio it had been made with a rather different purpose in mind. No time to make the special pilgrimage to Ilum to construct a new one, she had used several crystals already at the Temple. And it was not wrought with the care and attention that her old lightsaber had been, this new weapon was constructed along the lines of endurance and strength, not out of any personal preference but pure necessity.

Yet even with Obi-Wan and Anakin with her, Dooku clearly had the upper hand. Ask someone else to fend for himself in a three-on-one duel and they would come off second-best, but not Dooku. The former Jedi was clearly in his element, knocking back their attacks with polished finesse before adding a few of his own. His smooth, fluid movement was a match for Obi-Wan's strong, understated style or even Anakin's brash yet powerful attacks.

Added to this with Padmé, who had some of the smoothness of Dooku's style yet carried it differently. Each movement was clearly made so that it would not need another, she neither stopped nor needed to. Each attack, each parry, and even the times she had to back away seemed carefully calculated. Padmé had come a long way in the seven years since she faced Renust Nju and this was for a simple reason: she had needed to.

In an off-guarded moment, Anakin caught himself watching her. _It's like she's dancing_, he thought with a smile, bringing his own lightsaber down to clash with Dooku's. Yet for all that, it was still difficult for him to see her as another Jedi. To him, she was just Padmé.

They were separated now, but still continuing to attack together even if on different sides. However, Dooku seemed able to contend with this as he had done with any other situation he had so far dealt with.

Yet even Dooku knew he could not let this three-pronged barrage go on for long. If it had been up to him Dooku would have let the whole charade play as long as it would let. But he had orders from Sidious, and those orders were very specific.

_Isolate Skywalker, dispose of Kenobi, kill the girl_.

And Dooku was not willing to find out what would happen if he went against those orders. His master was a very jealous one.

Yet first things first: Kenobi. After all, he was the more experienced of his three opponents and better to dispense with him first.

Dooku began to focus all his attention on Obi-Wan, if Padmé or Anakin attacked he merely deflected the blows away. All his efforts were focused on one purpose, and only that.

_What's going on?_ Anakin thought, feeling his anger rising. _Why is Dooku not paying attention to me? I can take him, I know I can but he just keeps…batting me away._

Anakin attacked again, the same result. He ground his teeth in indignation, swinging his 'saber savagely at Dooku's left shoulder. Dooku evaded this gracefully, turning his back on the young Jedi and attacking Obi-Wan.

Anakin could feel his anger rising as Dooku lured Obi-Wan away, away from the Chancellor and up the stairs before either he or Padmé realised this. What was going on? Anakin was fuming, after all, this was as much his fight as it was Obi-Wan's or Padmé's.

Yet Padmé seemed to sense this, and she knew that this kind of tactic was as transparent as it seemed. She exchanged a glance with Anakin, he caught her eye and his anger subsided.

They advanced on Dooku together, lightsabers swinging in one motion. Up the stairs, along the catwalk and to where Dooku was in combat with Obi-Wan. The two blades swang dangerously close to Dooku, he only just managed to dodge out of their way and deflect Kenobi's next attack.

What had gone on there? This wasn't in his original plans, he had counted on Skywalker's lack of self-control to hinder him. Yet this plan was considered earlier, not counting on the unknown factor: Padmé. Why did that girl always have to insert herself at decisive moments of conflict at the worst possible time and come away unscathed? It clearly could not be allowed to continue. But first, Obi-Wan.

"Your moves are clumsy, Kenobi," Dooku taunted, once again ignoring Anakin but to bat him and Padmé away from him. "Still far too predictable."

Obi-Wan chose not to respond to this, bringing his deflection around in a counter-attack and locking his weapon with Dooku's.

"Surely you can do no better," Dooku snarled, elegantly evading Anakin and Padmé's blows to attack the older Jedi. "Should I have expected from the apprentice of Qui-Gon Jinn?"

At this remark Dooku knew he had struck the Jedi's weak point, it was small and slight but it was there. Dooku felt into the dark side to give his attack strength and purpose, then he moved so quickly that everything seemed to happen at once. He knocked Anakin _and_ Padmé back then gave Obi-Wan such a blow that the Jedi was left reeling.

But Dooku hadn't finished yet. He threw Obi-Wan back with such force that he was almost stunned, then held the Jedi up in the air and started to close his windpipe.

"It seems," said Dooku calmly to the choking Obi-Wan, "that the tables are now turned."

He turned to fend of Anakin's attack, throwing the young Jedi back and kicking him down the stairs. Padmé was dealt in the same way while all the time Obi-Wan was still suspended in mid-air.

"Pity it has to end this way," Dooku said with mock-apology.

He made a gesture with his free hand that sent Obi-Wan flying over the railing and to the level below. With a smile he made another gesture and collapsed the balcony, letting it fall on top of Obi-Wan's prone form.

But Dooku did not have the time to revel in his achievement; Skywalker was on him the very next moment. It took him a while to overcome the young man's frenzied attacks and once again gain the upper hand.

And then there was Padmé to contend with, she had a fury of her own. Quieter, and more subdued but nonetheless formidable.

To his surprise Dooku could feel himself tiring. But Skywalker…he was getting _stronger_. With each blow, with each step he seemed to add to the endless reserves of energy he possessed.

They fought across the platform to where the super battle droids were still standing idle.

"Open fire! Now!" Dooku ordered, his voice revealing his desperation.

Yet the droids proved little hindrance to Skywalker, he deflected all the bolts keenly and cut them down quickly with Padmé taking up the rear. Then, as Padmé moved to the side to trap Dooku against the rail Anakin attacked again, crossing his lightsaber with Dooku's and kicking the former Jedi over the rail.

Anakin jumped down after him, Padmé followed in a smooth flip that had her at Dooku's back. They were now once again right in front of Chancellor Palpatine, right where they had begun the fight. Palpatine remained silent, his eyes alert to every action, his hands clenched with the palpable tension.

Dooku brought his lightsaber up and stepped back to block the oncoming attacks, yet he did not withdraw but held his weapon there.

"I sense fear in you, Skywalker," Dooku taunted, his face very near Anakin's. "You're nothing but a posturing fool. And you," he turned to Padmé with a look of utter contempt. "Don't you have the sense to know when you're beaten?"

"Do you?" Padmé replied dryly, drawing back her green blade to attack again.

Then came an explosion and the ship shuddered violently, so much so that Padmé lost her footing and took several steps backward. This was all the time Dooku needed to attack with strength and vigour. He slashed quickly at her, forcing her back to where the Chancellor was seated, then when Padmé could not retreat anymore she side-stepped Palpatine's chair.

The next moment another explosion rocked the ship and Padmé fell back, right in the middle of an attack. Her green blade swung wildly, missing Dooku completely and severing Palpatine's chair from its stand. Palpatine fell forward, still strapped to the chair and hit his head on the metal floor. Anakin paled at this, but he did not let it stop him advancing on Dooku and putting his blue lightsaber blade in front of Dooku's red to stop it from getting to Padmé.

"Thanks," Padmé said with relief, giving half a smile to Anakin.

"No problem," Anakin replied, following through with an attack on Dooku's left side.

Padmé got to her feet and walked over to where the Chancellor lay while Anakin engaged with Dooku. Palpatine was knocked out, but still alive. Yet when Padmé looked up she saw that Anakin didn't need her help. He was in complete control of the fight, he backed Dooku towards the wall in a series of attacks. And Dooku was faltering, that was apparent in the way his parries were less poised, his defences slowly opening up.

Finally Anakin knocked Dooku's lightsaber from his hand, catching the weapon as it arced through the air. He held both lightsabers out like a pair of scissors, forcing Dooku down, forcing the Sith Lord to _submit_.

"Anakin?" Padmé's voice was soft as she approached him, she couldn't see his face but she could see Dooku's. There she read fear, the same fear she had seen in Palpatine's face when they had arrived.

"Please…" Dooku's voice was laboured and desperate. "The Chancellor promised me immunity!"

"You don't deserve that!" Anakin said in a low voice that Padmé didn't recognise.

"Anakin!" Padmé made her voice loud enough to attract both their attentions, he turned to look at her. He was smiling…why? They had won, they had managed to defeat Dooku despite what else had happened. But something in Anakin's smile, his easy pleasure at the victory, that made Padmé stop breathing, made her walk up to him quickly with the most sombre expression she could summon.

"Padmé?" The smile was starting to slip. "Is there something wrong?"

"He's surrendered," Padmé said slowly, she had to approach this one step at a time. "We have to take him into custody now. He'll have to be questioned."

"No!" The shout came from Anakin's lips before he was aware of it. "He's too dangerous to be kept alive, Padmé. I know you don't like it, I don't like it myself but it _has_ to be done."

"But think about all the lives we could _save_," Padmé pointed out. She placed one of her hands on top of his. "He's got secrets about the Separatists, he _knows_ what we're going to do. We could even _end_ this war."

Anakin stared at Padmé as if she were a stranger. Why was she even _considering_ this? Dooku had cut off Padmé's hand, hadn't he? Why was she showing him mercy? If it had been him…

"Anakin, I can restrain him," Padmé told him. "We can make it so he's not a danger to us, and he can get us out of here _with_ the Chancellor."

Anakin examined Dooku for a long moment.

"Are you sure?" His voice was doubtful.

Padmé pulled a think black strip with a buckle on the end. It was a choke-collar, designed to restrain prisoners on work-details. They were monitored by a remote control device and when they were moved out of the device's range the collar would constrict, closing the wearer's wind pipe.

Yet this one that Padmé had also possessed other capabilities, evidenced by the short prick in the back that would rub into the wearer's neck.

"It's supposed to interfere with the Force," she explained to him. "It's pretty strong."

"I'll cover you," he said, moving the lightsabers back so she could slip it around Dooku's neck.

Padmé activated it using a small remote, then gave the nod when it started working.

"Your mercy is appreciated," Dooku said humbly, getting to his feet.

"It's not my mercy," Anakin growled. "Just because you're alive doesn't mean I trust you. Hold out your hands!" Anakin applied a pair of stun-cuffs to Dooku and put the Sith's curved lightsaber on his belt. His own he kept lit and pointed at Dooku's throat.

At this moment the Chancellor gave out a low moan. "Oh, my head!" Padmé knelt next to him, gently rolling the chair so Palpatine was on his back. She used the Force to free him from his restraints and helped the politician to his feet.

"What happened?" Palpatine asked vaguely, looking from Padmé, to Anakin to the captured Dooku. "Isn't it rather a dangerous idea having him as a prisoner?"

"He can't hurt us and he will be invaluable to Republic Intelligence, Chancellor," Padmé said curtly, she added in a softer tone. "Are you injured? Are you able to walk?"

"I shall be fine," Palpatine replied with dignity. "A little bit dazed, but I am fine." He glanced around him. "I suppose this is a good time for leaving?"

They were at the foot of the stairs when Anakin suddenly remembered. "Obi-Wan!"

Padmé stepped in to guard Dooku while Anakin knelt at his Master's side. He pulled Obi-Wan loose from the metal slab and bent over his body.

"Anakin, there's no time," Palpatine said quietly, looking nervously at Dooku. "We must get out of here before more security droids arrive."

Anakin wasn't listening. "There's a pulse," he said with a smile. "Breathing's fine, no broken bones, slight concussion, he seems to be all right."

"Anakin, leave him," the Chancellor pressed. "We'll never make it, we're held up as it is."

Anakin stared at the Chancellor as if he were looking at the face of a complete stranger. Didn't he _understand_? Didn't he _know_ that you never, ever left _anyone_ behind if you could help it?

Yet that bitterness subsided, as Obi-Wan would have said Palpatine was a politician. A politician and not a Jedi, or a soldier.

With that conviction he swung Obi-Wan's body on his back, letting the Force balance the weight.

"His fate will be the same as ours," he said firmly, walking up to the elevator with Padmé and the others.

Palpatine muttered to himself yet didn't argue anymore.


	4. Chapter 4

From the bridge of the _Invisible Hand_ Grievous could see that little by little their starfighters were dwindling under the fire of the clone ARC-170s. When the vulture droids had gone the clone fighters retreated leaving the _Hand_ under the constant fire of the Republic's _Integrity_. The _Indomitable_, though nothing more than a floating hulk, kept at their rear blocking any chance of escape.

Grievous growled, startling the droid and organic crew alike.

"Concentrate all fire on the _Indomitable_," he said to the gunner officer. "All batteries at maximum. Blast the hulk out of space, we'll make a jump through the wreckage."

"But…the forward towers are overloading, sir," said the stammering Neimoidian. "They'll be at critical failure in less than a minute!"

"Burn them out!" Grievous roared.

"But sir, once they're gone—" The gunner's voice was lost in a shriek as Grievous snapped his neck in two. He then yanked the officer out of the chair and glared at the Neimoidian's subordinate.

"Congratulations on your promotion," the droid general barked. "Take your post."

"Y-y-yes sir," stammered the Neimoidian, unbuckling his restraints with shaking hands and took the seat as ordered.

"Do you understand your orders?"

"Y-y-y—"

"Do you have any objections?"

"N-n-n—"

"Very well then." Grievous's face calmed somewhat, his tone became less harsh. "Carry on."

----------------------------

Padmé was never to know this, but the choke collar around Dooku's neck only had a mild effect on him. If he wanted he could have removed the collar and escaped then and there, but that would have been against Sidious' plan. For the second part of his orders, orders he had no choice but to accept, involved being captured and taken into custody by the Jedi.

He may have failed on the first two counts, and he was sure to incur the wrath of his Master Sidious for doing so, but Sidious was extremely adaptable in his manipulations. He had to be, the Sith had had to evolve in such a way as the ensure their very survival.

But at the moment they were waiting near the elevator, Anakin was continually hailing R2-D2 to activate it but the little droid could not or chose not to respond.

The ship was really rolling now beneath their feet, it was quite some effort to keep on one's feet. Finally in desperation Anakin wrenched the doors open to the elevator shaft just as the deck tilted to make the wall.

"Come on!" Anakin called to Padmé, he was already in the elevator shaft with the Chancellor behind him. Padmé quickly tied a cable to Dooku's cuff and attached it to her belt and followed.

For a while it wasn't that hard going, the side of the elevator shaft made an adequate floor if but a rather jumpy one.

_What is Artoo_ doing Anakin thought fiercely.

----------------------------

But Artoo was having his own problems. Despite the absence of Obi-Wan's loud voice, the little droid had again attracted the attention of several battledroids.

He scurried behind a console, yet skidded away from it as the ship rolled underneath him. Artoo squealed as he headed towards the ray shields at the rear-end of the hanger. The battledroids followed him, firing all the way and fell into the ray shield as the ship tilted back.

Artoo had no time to see this, he fell into a pile of droid parts.

----------------------------

The _Invisible Hand_ was now in a definite dive, tilting dangerously close to the surface of Coruscant.

General Grievous, holding firmly onto a bulk head with two of his free hands screamed at the crew to do something.

"Fire the emergency booster engines!" he roared, vowing to rip the throat out of anyone who told him they didn't work.

Fortunately they did, and the ship began to level out.

----------------------------

Not so fortunate for Anakin, the elevator shaft once again aligned vertically again. He was just able to grab onto some cables with his free hand to break his fall and holding out his right leg for Palpatine to hold onto.

Padmé fell past him, but she managed to grab onto something with Dooku dangling below her like a peculiar spider.

It was at this precarious moment that Obi-Wan decided to wake up.

"What happened?" he asked, grabbing onto Anakin's shoulders. "What did I miss?"

"A whole lot," Anakin replied, but there was no time to explain.

----------------------------

Battered or not, Artoo still remembered what Anakin had told him. The little droid, once seeing that there was nothing about, trundled diligently to a terminal and activated the elevator.

----------------------------

Above Anakin's head he heard a low rumble, it was getting louder.

"What's that?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I think it's the elevator," Anakin told him. "I told Artoo to activate it."

"Anakin!"

"Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time," Anakin said with a shrug. With his other hand he got out his comlink. "Artoo, shut down the elevator!" It was getting nearer, they could almost see it now. "Artoo?"

"Too late, jump!" Obi-Wan yelled in his ear and Anakin let go.

Below him Anakin could see Padmé and Dooku falling, faster and faster down the shaft. In desperation, Anakin screamed into the comlink. "Artoo! Open the doors, all floors!"

This time Artoo was much more prompt in following orders, the doors clanked open and Padmé managed to direct her fall through one. Anakin followed her landing on the metal deck beside her and Dooku.

In the few seconds of confusion that followed Obi-Wan was able to assess the situation. The fact that they had Dooku a prisoner could prove a help rather than a hindrance. Details could wait though, and then they could all have a good laugh.

"Pardon, Master Kenobi," said a much dishevelled Palpatine, "but are all your rescues so… _entertaining_?"

Anakin and Obi-Wan looked at each other.

"Actually," Obi-Wan said, recalling Geonosis, "now that you mention it: yes, they are."

----------------------------

The _Hand_ had stopped rolling but the laserfire from the Republic capital ships was still continuing. Grievous paced silently, all that remained was for the _Indomitable_ to get out of their flank and they could make the jump.

"Sir?" The timid voice of the comm officer interrupted the droid general's pacing. "We are being hailed by the _Integrity_. They propose a ceasefire, sir."

The Neimoidian officer waited, Grievous would just as likely go into a rage as coldly accepting what was happening. Fortunately this time, the latter occurred.

"Acknowledge their transmission," Grievous grunted. "Stand by to ceasefire."

"Standing by, sir," said the shaking gunnery officer.

"Cease fire." Grievous ordered, this was in no generosity on his part but to give their weapons time to cool. The ceasefire would be temporary at best.

"There's another transmission from the _Integrity_," the comm officer said.

"Patch it through." The ghostly image of a young human male in the grey uniform of the Republic Navy appeared.

"General Grievous," said the young man. "I am Lieutenant-Commander Lorth Needa of the RSS _Integrity_."

Grievous stood there, unperturbed by this.

----------------------------

At the transmitting end there was remarkable difference, but instead of the bravado that Grievous carried in Needa's eyes was the cool confidence of triumph. He _knew_ he had Grievous beaten, this call was really a test. A test to see if any degree of mercy or honour—if little there be—resided behind that durasteel mask.

"At my request, my superiors have consented to offer you the chance to surrender your ship," Needa continued.

"Surrender?" Grievous barked, staring down the young commander. "Preposterous."

"Please give this offer greater consideration, General, as it will not be repeated," Needa insisted patiently. "You may wish to take into account the lives of your crew."

"Why should I?" asked Grievous incredulously.

If Needa was surprised he did not show it in his face. "Is this your reply, sir?" inquired the young officer.

"Not at all." Grievous drew himself up to his full height, this was intended to make him look intimidating and imposing though Needa thought it did neither. "I have a counteroffer," the droid general said. "Maintain your ceasefire, move that hulk _Indomitable_ out of my way and withdraw to a minimum range of fifty kilometres until this ship achieves hyperspace jump."

If this offer had been backed up by firepower it would have warranted consideration, but since the _Invisible Hand_ was the only Separatist ship remaining in orbit Needa didn't hesitate.

"If I may use your word, sir: preposterous," he said, not daring to venture a smile.

"Tell those superiors of yours that if my demands are not met within ten minutes I will personally disembowel Supreme Chancellor Palpatine," growled Grievous. "Is that understood?"

"Ah, the Chancellor is aboard your ship then?" Needa need not have asked, he knew that Jedi had managed to get inside the _Invisible Hand_ though he knew not what they had done.

"He is," answered Grievous. "Your pathetic Jedi have failed. They are dead and Palpatine is in my hands."

"So you will of course allow me to speak with him?" Needa inquired politely. "I need to reassure my superiors that you are not—well, to put it charitably—bluffing?"

----------------------------

"I would not lower myself to lie to the likes of you," Grievous snarled, he gestured to someone on board the ship. "Patch in Count Dooku."

The comm officer blanched when Dooku failed to answer his comlink. He had seen what had happened to the gunnery officer.

"Uh…he's not responding, sir," the Neimoidian said.

"Just _show_ the Chancellor then," Grievous ordered. "Bring up my quarters."

"Um…sir?"

"What are you waiting for, you fool? Bring it up!"

"Sir, perhaps you should have a _look_ first?"

Cursing all Neimoidians as idiots, Grievous examined the security screen. There in his quarters he saw the wreckage of his chair as well as other evidence of a scuffle but no Dooku and most importantly no Chancellor.

Could those Jedi have survived? Could they have the Chancellor _and_ Count Dooku?

"The Chancellor sends his apologies," Grievous told Needa. "He is currently indisposed."

"Ah, I see," Needa replied icily.

Grievous did not like the looks of this. "I _assure_ you—"

"I do not require your assurance, General," Needa replied confidently. "You have the same amount of time that you offered us. Ten minutes from now I will have your surrender or your confirmation that Supreme Chancellor Palpatine is alive, unharmed and _present_ or the _Invisible Hand_ will be destroyed."

"Wait," implored Grievous. "You can't possibly—"

"Ten minutes, General," Needa repeated and the communication ended.

For a moment Grievous was still, examining the space where Needa's hologram had been. Then he exploded, charging forward and ripping out the throat of the nearest Neimoidian.

"Dooku is gone, the Jedi are loose," he snarled, throwing the Neimoidian's body at the security console. "Find them!"

----------------------------

"How long till we find the escape pods?" Padmé asked Anakin.

"We need to find the parts of the ships meant for live crew," Anakin told her. "This section's mostly for droids."

"In more ways than one," Obi-Wan noted dryly. "We should try for the hangars, see if there's something that's still flyable."

They turned several corners to finally reach a hangar, though not the one where Anakin had left Artoo. He and Obi-Wan quickly surveyed the ships still there, it didn't look promising.

"None of these will get us anywhere," Obi-Wan concluded.

"I agree," Anakin said.

"So now what do we do?" Obi-Wan asked, he was still at loss for an idea of how to get four people—no five—on to a ship and down to the surface.

"How should I know?" Anakin demanded.

"Let's try further on," Padmé suggested quickly, wondering if she hadn't intervened if Obi-Wan and Anakin would have continued arguing.

----------------------------

"Sir, sir!" One of the Neimodians blundered up to him. "We've found the Jedi. They're in hallway 328."

If it had been possible, Grievous would have smiled. But since he could not he merely gave the order less gruff than he would have normally done.

"Activate ray shields!"

----------------------------

So as it happened, Anakin was leading them down the corridor when the five became enclosed in a ray shield trap no more than a metre wide either way. They were completely boxed in.

"Ray shields," Anakin said with a grimace.

"Wait a minute, how did this happen?" Obi-Wan looked at Anakin. "We're smarter than this!"

"Apparently not," Anakin replied with a smile at Padmé. "It's the oldest trick there is and we walked right into it. Well," he shrugged. "I was distracted."

"Oh, so this is suddenly _my_ fault is it?" Obi-Wan demanded.

"Hey, you're the Master, I'm just the hero," Anakin said, glancing around their prison.

"Perhaps we should negotiate for our release," Palpatine suggested.

"With what?" Obi-Wan asked. "Grievous would sooner throw us all out the nearest airlock."

"Well maybe not _all_ of us," Padmé added quietly, nodding to their captive.

For the first time they acknowledged that they had Count Dooku with them.

"And if that doesn't work?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I agree with Padmé," Anakin said loyally. "And if not that: patience."

"Patience?" Obi-Wan snorted. "_That_ is your plan?"

"Well Artoo will be along any minute to deactivate the ray shields," Anakin pointed out.

And true to form, the little droid did arrive. Skidding across the deck at an alarming rate and crashing into the wall.

"See?" Anakin smiled triumphantly. "No problem."

Behind them the door opened and several magna guards emerged with droidekas following. They aimed their weapons at the Jedi.

"Perhaps we should try Plan B," Obi-Wan murmured, nudging Padmé slightly.

"Throw down your weapons, all of you!" she shouted, bringing out her lightsaber and shoving Dooku to where the droids could see them. There was no room to ignite the blade but she didn't need to, the droids understood her meaning.

Yet it took a word from Dooku to spur them into action. "Do what she says."

The droids compiled, looking at Dooku for further orders.

"Now deactivate the shield," Padmé ordered, Dooku repeated the order and when this was done they were able to get out.

Anakin handed Palpatine a discarded blaster pistol while Padmé negotiated their way to the bridge using Dooku as their bargaining chip.

----------------------------

"What is she doing?" Grievous asked no one in particular. Before his eyes her had seen one of the Jedi, the _female_ Jedi use the captured Dooku to make the droids, _his_ droids, obey her! This could not be tolerated.

He turned to the security officer.

"Order all combat droids to terminate their search algorithms and converge on the bridge," Grievous ordered, then reconsidered. "Wait, no battledroids, super battledroids and droidekas only. They will take instructions only from me."

"Yessir."

----------------------------

On their way to the bridge Padmé and Obi-Wan came to the agreement that it would be better for him to handle the negotiations as there was more of a chance of Grievous taking them seriously. After all, Obi-Wan was as famed for his skills as a mediator as Anakin was for his piloting.

"Ah, General Kenobi the negotiator," Grievous greeted. "And Anakin Skywalker, I was expecting someone of your reputation to be a little older."

"General Grievous," Anakin replied with a nod, "you're shorter than I expected."

"Anakin, please try not to upset him," Obi-Wan warned him.

But Obi-Wan needn't have spoken, Grievous was well able to react accordingly without help from Anakin or anyone else for that matter.

"We have the upper hand, General," Padmé reminded him, bringing forth their captive. Obi-Wan might be in charge, but she knew they had to get back on track. They were running out of time.

"I am willing to accept your surrender," Obi-Wan said amiably. "We have Count Dooku, taking you with us is merely secondary."

"And what if I don't come willingly?" Grievous challenged. "What if I don't want to surrender?"

"Is not Count Dooku the leader of your organisation?" Obi-Wan asked. "Surely if he has surrendered you are obligated to follow him."

"The only thing I am _obligated_ to do, General Kenobi, is to see that all of you never leave this ship alive," Grievous spat.

Padmé was hoping that Dooku would contribute to this, but he remained impassive and silent. Why didn't he give Grievous any instructions? Why did he just _stand_ there?

"And I'm not a fool," Grievous continued. "I _never_ give in."

"Well _that's_ news to me," Anakin remarked dryly.

Grievous turned to look at him and Obi-Wan made a subtle gesture with his hand. This was the signal that R2-D2 was waiting for. The little droid fired sparks, extending all his projecting arms and making a long high-pitched shriek.

"Crush them!" Grievous shouted to his guards as he stood back to let them fight. "Make them suffer!"

Anakin and Obi-Wan instantly went to work, igniting their lightsabers and cutting through the magna guards that massed towards them. The tall droids were humanoid in shape, and brandished crackling electro-staffs that could deflect a lightsaber blow. Grievous had trained them himself and they were formidable enough.

Even so, Obi-Wan found them quite predictable and lacking any originality. It took little to match the droid's blows with some of his own, whirling his lightsaber round and bringing down to slice through the droid's head.

Yet after this the droid kept fighting, and it was a good thing that Obi-Wan hadn't completely turned his back on it. A few more minutes saw the droid in pieces, but soon enough he was fighting another.

Padmé was having problems of her own, Dooku had broken from his bonds and grabbed Chancellor Palpatine and several battledroids. She cut through the battledroids, grabbing the Chancellor and pulling him behind her.

"Take cover!" she told him, relieved when she saw the politician crawl under a console. Using her lightsaber as a shield she grabbed Dooku's wrist, turning him around to make sure the collar was around his neck. It was. She dragged the Sith Lord back to the bridge, quickly shackling him to a chair.

Almost all the droids were gone, Padmé sent Artoo to watch Dooku then confronted Grievous with Obi-Wan and Anakin beside her.

The droid general examined his three adversaries.

"We're dropping out of orbit!" screamed the Neimoidian pilot. "The ship is breaking up!"

They were out of time, and soon enough the volley of laserfire began again from the _Integrity_. He surveyed the Jedi one more time, then picked up an electro-staff and brandished it before him.

"You lose, General Kenobi!" he bellowed, throwing the staff into the transparasteel of the viewport and making the panel explode and air to suck out of the bridge. Grievous leapt through the smashed window, crawling along the side of the ship.

All Anakin, Padmé and Obi-Wan could do was hold on as everything inside the ship was sucked out into space. Droid parts, discarded weapons, the Neimoidian pilot…Anakin quickly looked back, Palpatine was holding onto something and was in no danger.

A few seconds later a blast shield closed the hole where the window used to be.


	5. Chapter 5

Outside the _Invisible Hand_,Grievous scuttled towards an airlock, his feet held to the hull by strong magnets. He keyed in a code then re-entered the ship. Grievous was exactly where he wanted to be, the escape pod bay. He walked over to the panel and pressed the buttons to launch the pods.

"Time to abandon ship," he said with a laugh, getting into the last remaining pod and launching it from inside.

----------------------------

While Padmé saw to Dooku and Palpatine, Anakin and Obi-Wan examined the controls. The readouts were grim.

"All the escape pods have been launched," Anakin said.

"Grievous." Obi-Wan looked at Anakin. "Can you fly a cruiser like this?"

"Flying's not the problem," Anakin explained. "It's _landing_ which you know this cruiser isn't designed to do even when it's in one piece." He sat at the console, ignoring the bloodstains of the Neimoidian who had once sat there. "Strap yourselves in; it's going to get rough."

Once they were all seated, Anakin and Obi-Wan at the front with Padmé, Dooku and the Chancellor to the sides, Anakin took a moment to orient himself. Yet before he pressed one key the entire ship shuddered and several more alarms started to blare.

"It wasn't me!" Anakin said as he jerked his hands away. "I haven't done anything!"

"That was the _Integrity_," Padmé told him. "They're shooting at us."

"Well, tell them to stop!" Anakin flicked a few switches to try and bring the bucking ship under some sort of control. "Let them know we've captured the ship."

"Here." Padmé handed Palpatine one of the blaster pistols that hadn't been sucked out when Grievous had smashed the window. She changed the setting to 'kill' and cocked it. "Don't hesitate if he tries anything."

Palpatine looked at the weapon with somewhat bewilderment as Padmé hailed the _Integrity_.

"Steady…steady…attitude…eighteen degrees," Obi-Wan said, checking then double-checking his readouts.

"Pressure rising," Anakin murmured, feeling the sweat pouring down his face. "We've got to slow this wreck down! Open all hatches, extend all flaps and drag fins."

"Temperature steady," Obi-Wan told him. "Hatches open, flaps extended, drag fins—"

Obi-Wan's voice broke off as a large part of the ship broke away.

"We lost something," Anakin muttered, he didn't need the instruments to tell him, he _knew_.

"Not to worry," Obi-Wan said with a smile, "we are still flying half a ship."

"All ships are moving from this vector, Anakin," Padmé told him. "You're clear to go right in, here's your landing strip." She sent it so it came up on his control panel, but Anakin barely heard her.

Padmé didn't mind, she knew if anyone could land this wrecked hulk of a ship, Anakin could.

----------------------------

From the bridge of the _Integrity_ Lieutenant-Commander Needa and his crew watched the _Invisible Hand_ come in below them. He had had relayed a series of orders to make the ship's landing as easy as possible, yet this was little compared to the monumental task of landing the ship itself.

Needa knew it was impossible, it simply _couldn't_ be done. But here it was, the pride of the Confederacy's fleet wrecked beyond belief, better off to be abandoned for scrap than anything else and one of the best pilots Needa has ever heard of was at the helm.

And not only that, but on that ship was Chancellor Palpatine and Count Dooku. The first the mainstay of the Republic and the second the one they knew they could use to disable the Separatist's power.

Yet for all this, and for the fact they had won the battle, Needa could not help wonder if they were about to lose the war.

----------------------------

"Now we're really picking up speed," Anakin said, he changed their trajectory slightly. "I'm going to shift a few degrees to try and slow us down."

"Careful, we're heating up," Obi-Wan informed him. "Twelve thousand…thirteen thousand…"

"What's our speed?" Anakin asked suddenly.

"Eight plus sixty-forty," Obi-Wan replied. "Eight plus sixty-twenty…eight plus sixty…" It took all of Obi-Wan's self-control not to wipe the moisture on the back of his neck. "Temp ten thousand… nine thousand…we're in the atmosphere." Obi-Wan permitted himself to smile, but it wasn't over yet.

Anakin pointed one of the controls. "Padmé, grab that! Keep us level."

"Steady…steady…"Obi-Wan murmured.

"Easy now, Padmé," Anakin said, not looking at her unless he was distracted. "That's it. Hang on…we lost our heat shields. This may get a little rough."

"Five thousand, three thousand, two thousand," Obi-Wan read to Anakin, then spotted another transmission. "Fireships on the left and right."

"We'll take you in," said the fireship pilot.

"Copy that," Obi-Wan replied. "Landing strip up ahead."

"We're coming in too hot," Anakin complained, the engines were almost failing now.

"Easy…easy," cautioned Obi-Wan.

"Hang on!" Anakin held his breath as the landing strip neared and hoped to the Force they would all survive.

In the last part of the landing Anakin lost all sense of direction. Nothing was there but the ship around him and the controls beneath his finger tips. Instinctively he moved and changed them, his eyes not seeing and his ears not comprehending the results. The only feeling outside this was the hard jolt that signalled planet-fall, yet this was only a slight nudge to him. He worked without speaking, without even listening to what Obi-Wan was saying until suddenly Padmé tapped him on the shoulder.

"We made it," she told him, smiling warmly.

"Another happy landing," Obi-Wan remarked dryly.

----------------------------

From the back of a gunship, one of several at the end of the large industrial landing platform, Mace Windu had watched the _Invisible Hand_ come in. Even he, Jedi Master as he was, marvelled at what he had seen. Who else brought down this hulk? Who else could have come close? Who else would have even _considered_ it?

Mace shook his head. Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One.

"Believe it," said Kuan Yin Nevu, she had watched it with him and courteously hadn't reminded Mace of his initial reluctance to accept Skywalker into the Jedi Order. She hadn't needed to.

"Is that Dooku with them?" asked Renust Nju.

Windu nodded, here was yet another unbelievable thing. As a Jedi he had been known as one of the best swordsmen in the Order, and he had been taken alive. 'Alive and unharmed' had been Padmé's official report to the _Integrity_.

Mace strode out with the other two to meet them just as Anakin was helping Palpatine down from the cockpit. It was a curious scene, Palpatine looking slightly dishevelled, Padmé leading Dooku as her prisoner, the dented astromech droid beside her, Obi-Wan following Padmé and bleeding slightly from a scalp wound. But Skywalker…

He carried himself as if the scene was designed for him to be in it, completely in control of himself and the moment he was in.

"Chancellor." Mace inclined his head respectfully. "Are you injured? Do you need medical attention? I have a field surgery on stand-by."

"I am quite all right thank you, Master Windu," Palpatine reassured. "If I may suggest your efforts would be better place in the rather…undesirable company."

"It's being attended to," Mace told him, sure enough Kuan Yin and Renust were leading Dooku into a waiting armoured airspeeder. "Master Kenobi? Anakin? Padmé?"

"Never felt better," Anakin said taking something from his belt and handing it to Mace. "You might want this."

The Jedi Master examined it. Dooku's lightsaber. But _why_? And why did Anakin keep it? But Mace postponed his questions, they could wait for another time.

"Let me be the first to congratulate the three of you for capturing Count Dooku," Mace said warmly.

"It wasn't me," Obi-Wan interjected. "It was Anakin and Padmé who captured him; I was…taking a nap." At this last remark he made a gesture to his scalp wound, but he was smiling.

"How did it happen?" Mace asked.

Padmé and Anakin traded an uncomfortable glance. How was he going to explain to Master Windu that he would have killed Dooku if Padmé had not been there?

"Dooku threatened the Chancellor," Padmé replied, hoping Anakin would take the hint and shut up. "Anakin managed to overpower him quite easily after that."

"I myself did not see the end of the fight," Palpatine interjected, "and I know very little of swordplay, but it seemed that Anakin was more highly motivated. After all," he smiled at Anakin fondly as he said this, "Dooku was only fighting to slay an enemy, but Anakin was fighting to save—if I may presume the honour—a friend."

"Interesting," Mace remarked, scowling slightly. "Well, I am sure the Council will be looking forward to your full report." These last words were directed at Anakin who understood their meaning perfectly.

"Yes, yes of course Master Windu," stammered the young man.

"There is a shuttle coming," Mace told the Chancellor. "The HoloNet has already been told you will want to make a statement."

"I will, indeed I will," replied Palpatine, touching the Jedi's arm lightly. "You have always been of great service to me, Master Windu."

"The Jedi are honoured to serve the Senate, sir," Mace replied with more emphasis than he would have liked and subtly moved himself away from the Chancellor's touch. "Is there anything else to report? The capture of Dooku seems news enough, but what of General Grievous?"

"Grievous escaped," Obi-Wan told him. "He is as cowardly as ever."

"Grievous will run and hide like he always does," Mace replied, recalling for a moment their encounter before the kidnapping.

"No doubt the capture of Count Dooku will further spur the ending of this war," Palpatine said. "The Separatist council will splinter. The final days of this war are at hand."

"Then it is no doubt the time to sue for peace," Mace suggested but Palpatine shook his head.

"I am afraid peace is out of the question with Grievous still at large," Palpatine said sadly. "Dooku was the only check on Grievous's lust for slaughter, and now with Dooku in our custody the general has been unleashed to rampage across the galaxy. This war may be about to get a lot worse."

"But Dooku can be made to help us," Obi-Wan suggested. "Perhaps he can even reveal the identity of the Sith Lord."

"Perhaps, perhaps," agreed Mace reluctantly, giving Obi-Wan a hard look that he hoped would silence anymore talk about the Sith. "But Grievous is not known for his mercy, Chancellor. He spared you, but I cannot imagine why."

"I can only assume the Separatists preferred to have me as a hostage than as a martyr," Palpatine replied with a shrug. "Though may have just been his whim. It is impossible to say what he will do next, he is notoriously erratic."

"Perhaps the Separatists can restrain him in exchange for some…considerations," Mace suggested, they could see the shuttle now that would take them to the Senate building.

"Absolutely not." Palpatine said with dignity. "A negotiated peace is no peace at all, Master Windu. It would recognise the Confederacy as a legitimate government which would be the same as losing the war. No," Palpatine shook his head decidedly. "We _all _know that this war can and will end in only one way: unconditional surrender."

He was referring—without naming names—to the fiasco that had been the peace talks on Avingnon four years ago.

"And Grievous is not like Sarsur," Obi-Wan reminded them. "He's not going to allow that."

"Then the Jedi will make the capture of Grievous our most important priority," Mace replied, walking with the Chancellor to the shuttle. "This war has gone on more than long enough. When we find him, this war ends."

"I agree, but we should not underestimate the deviousness of the Separatists," Palpatine reminded him. "It is possible that this war is only the final move in a greater game."

These last remarks were not comforting, yet Mace took them in due course as the shuttle ascended.

----------------------------

As the shuttle neared the Senate building, Mace made a small, surreptitious gesture to Obi-Wan.

The Jedi made no sign of recognising it, but when the shuttle docked and Palpatine, Anakin, Padmé and Artoo headed out Obi-Wan stayed behind.

"Aren't you coming, Master?" Anakin asked.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "I haven't the courage for politics," he admitted. "Besides…" he glanced at the holo-journalists scattered around, "someone has to be the poster boy."

Anakin glared at him. "Poster _man_."

"Quite right, quite right," Obi-Wan chuckled. "Go and meet your public, Poster Man."

"But this operation was your idea," Anakin protested. "It's only fair that you should take the bows with me."

Obi-Wan only smiled. "You and Padmé are the real heroes in this, Anakin," he said. "You captured Count Dooku, rescued the Chancellor while carrying some broken-down Jedi Master unconscious on your back. Not to mention making a landing that will be the standard of Impossible in every flight manual for the next thousand years."

"Only because of your training," Anakin reminded him.

"That's just an excuse," dismissed his former Master.

"You owe me for this one, Master," Anakin said. "After saving your skin for the tenth time—"

"_Ninth_ time," Obi-Wan interrupted. "Cato Neimoidia doesn't count, it was your fault in the first place." He waved Anakin and Padmé on. "I'll see both of you at the briefing in the morning."

"Don't worry, Obi-Wan," Padmé reassured. "I'll make sure he doesn't get into _too_ much trouble."

"I won't worry," Obi-Wan replied, then he entered the shuttle. As it moved away from the landing platform he watched the two of them walking together. There once was a time when Obi-Wan had been reluctant to leave Anakin alone with Padmé, but that time was long since past. Now he could leave his former Padawan without the secret fear that the young man would be entrapped by his own feelings.

"So what do we do now?" Anakin asked Padmé as they walked past the politicians and journalists.

Before Padmé could answer they were greeted by Senator Organa.

"Skywalker, Padmé, the Republic cannot thank you enough," the senator said. "The capture of Count Dooku is not an easy feat to boast of, neither is being the rescuer of the Supreme Chancellor."

"We all do our best to serve, senator," Padmé replied with a smile.

"The kidnapping was a bold move by the Separatists," Anakin said. "But it was a mistake that we were able to take advantage of."

They were inside the Senate building now, the tall red columns casting strange shadows.

"Count Dooku's capture will surely bring an end to this war," Organa continued, "and an end to the Chancellor's draconian security measures."

"I wish that were so, but the fighting is going to continue until General Grievous is spare parts," Anakin replied. "The Chancellor is very clear about that."

"Yet there is every chance that that will be soon," Padmé reassured, turning when she sensed someone else approaching them.

It was Danta Pela, once a pilot of goff birds on Naboo, then the representative of Senator Nalanda. Now he was Senator of Naboo, yet some of his critics said he would never grow into the role that had been left by Nalanda's death. Padmé knew otherwise, the Gungan's heart was in the right place as were his associations.

"Mesa pleased to see yousa Padmé," Danta said giving her a broad smile, yet a wider smile was reserved for Anakin. "Annie, mesa see yours flying. Really bombad piloting, very bombad."

"Thanks Danta," Anakin said, blushing slightly.

At this inopportune time, Bail Organa's comlink buzzed. When he realised who it was he apologised.

"I have to take this," Organa said, he glanced at Padmé carefully. "Would it be fine if you called on me later? I have some questions about what you found on your mission."

Anakin expected Padmé to refuse this, after all why was Senator Organa prying into Jedi affairs? Yet to his surprise Padmé readily agreed, the senators excused themselves and he and Padmé were alone.

"What was that all about?" he asked her.

"I'll explain at another time," Padmé said. "It's a very long story." She glanced up at the chrono on the wall. "You wanted to know what we should do now?"

"Yes." Anakin gave her a side-ways glance.

Padmé smiled at him, not like the forced, tight smiles she had given him earlier. This was as he remembered her back on Naboo, even if there was still the something between them.

"I think we would do something fun," Padmé suggested.

"Something fun?" Anakin stared at her.

"Yes, is something wrong Anakin?" Padmé asked. "Are Jedi not allowed to do anything fun?"

"Yes, but…" There were all these questions he wanted to ask her. Hadn't they just survived a battle? Somehow enjoying themselves seemed…inappropriate. And what about what she had said to him seven years ago? That smile she had given him could have meant she had forgotten all about it.

But Anakin chastened himself, hadn't he promised Padmé to let her set the limits on their relationship? If she wanted do go and do something fun it was her lookout.

"All right," he agreed. "I just don't think your idea of fun is the same as mine."

"Trust me," she said, walking off with him. "It is."

The ever-faithful R2-D2 trundled behind them.


	6. Chapter 6

"A Sith Lord?" Obi-Wan asked incredulously. "In the Chancellor's inner circle?"

Mace nodded. "We have to be prepared to accept that what Dooku told you on Geonosis is actually true," he said, staring directly at Obi-Wan. "I have yet to question it fully with him, but it is possible, entirely possible, that the Senate has been under the control of Darth Sidious and has been for a number of years."

They were seated in Yoda's chambers, Yoda was seated beside Obi-Wan and between Mace and Obi-Wan there was an empty seat as Renust Nju had yet to arrive from the Senate.

Obi-Wan paused at this news, trying to contemplate it.

"What made you think this?" he asked finally.

"That information you and Anakin discovered on Cato Neimoidia," Mace replied. "We were able to trace the Sith Lord to an abandoned factory of The Works. When the attack began, we were tracking him through the underground tunnels." Mace paused for a moment, his gaze hardening. "The trail led to the sub-basement of Five Hundred Republica."

Five Hundred Republica, the most exclusive address on Coruscant. Its inhabitants were either incredible wealthy, immensely powerful or both. People like Raith Seinar, Sate Pestage, and Mas Amedda…and Palpatine.

"Do you have any suspects?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Suspects we have in abundance," Yoda replied. "Know all we do of Sidious is that bipedal he is and roughly human in form."

"Sate Pestage I thought of," Mace added. "Perhaps even Mas Amedda, but the Sith Lord could be hiding in the Red Guards for all we know."

"Who's handling the questioning?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Questioning?" Yoda asked in surprise. "Never allow that, young Palpatine would. And no proof we have, only suspicions."

"And relations with the Chancellor's office are strained to say the least," Mace explained. "I have certainly lost my trust in him."

"I recall, Mace, that not long ago you were one of his supporters," Obi-Wan pointed out.

"Things change," said Mace in a tight voice. "You haven't been here, Obi-Wan. The Senate has already surrendered so much power, it's hard to say where Palpatine's authority stops."

"Is that bad?" Obi-Wan asked.

Mace stared at him. "The only reason that Palpatine's not a suspect is that he _already_ rules the galaxy."

Obi-Wan considered this for a moment, yet this silence was broken by Renust Nju entering the room. He deposited a holoprojector on the middle pod and sat down.

"It's the latest amendment to the Security Act," Nju explained. "I believe it will be presented to the Senate this afternoon."

"This report—from where did it come?" asked Yoda

Before Nju could reply Mace answered for him. "The Jedi have friends in the Senate," he explained, "for now." He turned back to Nju. "Anything else?"

"My source expects passage by acclamation," he replied. "'Overwhelming passage' are their words, and as early as this afternoon."

Obi-Wan stared at him then went back to reading the report. It didn't bode well for the Jedi at all: it gave the Chancellor authority over the Jedi Order. Such an amendment at such a time and in light of what they had been discussing earlier seemed far too calculated and planned than to be anything but the work of the Sith themselves.

"The Chancellor's goal in this, unclear it is to me," Yoda murmured. "Though nominally in control of the Council the Senate may place him, the Jedi he cannot control. Moral, our authority, lies in; not merely legal. Simply follow orders the Jedi do not."

"Apparently this is something that has been plaguing the Chancellor for quite some time," Nju said thoughtfully, he looked at Mace. "Remember when we intercepted that transmission from Grievous and you went ahead with the attack on Belderone without first going through the Chancellor?"

Mace nodded, he remembered but he did not agree. His suspicions lay much darker. "I don't think he intends to control the Jedi," he said. "Placing the Jedi Council under the Office of the Supreme Chancellor gives him more prerogative than we realise." Mace took a deep breath then spoke the words that had been eating away at his heart since the war began. "I sense a plot to destroy the Jedi."

"Disband us?" Obi-Wan asked. "Surely you cannot believe this is his intention?"

"_His_ intention?" Mace shook his head. "Perhaps not, but the Chancellor's intentions are irrelevant. All that matters are the intentions of the Sith Lord who holds the government in his grasp. The Jedi Order are all that stands between him and galactic domination, what do you think he will do?"

"Authority to disband the Jedi the Senate would never grant," Yoda said firmly.

"The Senate will vote to grant _exactly_ that, Master Yoda," said Renust Nju. "They will pass it this afternoon, my source was very clear on that."

"The implications of this comprehend they must not!" Yoda declared.

"That doesn't matter," Nju told him. "They know where the power is, and they have been taught to fear it."

"But even disbanded the Jedi Order will remain," insisted Yoda. "Even without legal authority Jedi we would still be. Jedi Knights have served long before this Republic, continue to serve it they will when it is but dust."

"Master Yoda, that day may have come sooner than any of us could have anticipated," Mace argued. "That day may even be _today_."

"Convinced I am not," grunted Yoda.

Mace looked depreciatingly at Obi-Wan.

"We don't yet know what the Sith Lord's plans may be," Obi-Wan pointed out. "The only thing we can be certain of is that Palpatine cannot be trusted. This draft resolution is not the work of an over-zealous Senator. Palpatine probably wrote it himself and passed it on to someone he controls so it looks like the Senate is 'forcing him to act in the name of security'."

"And he will continue to do this," Mace went on, "until one day he will have to 'reluctantly accept' the post of dictator for life. This is a step aimed at the heart of the Jedi, a move towards our destruction. The dark side of the Force surrounds the Chancellor."

"As it has surrounded and cloaked the Separatists since the war began," Obi-Wan agreed. "If the Chancellor is being influenced by the dark side, then this whole war may have been, from the very beginning, a Sith plot to destroy the Republic and the Jedi Order."

"Yet we have no proof for this," Renust Nju pointed out and Yoda nodded grimly.

"Speculation!" he grunted, thumping his gimer stick next to him. "On theories like this we cannot rely!"

"Proof may be a luxury we cannot afford," Mace stated. "We must be ready to _act_, without proof if need be."

"Act?" Obi-Wan asked. He wasn't sure if he liked the sounds of this.

"He cannot be allowed to move against the Order," Mace explained. "He cannot be allowed to prolong this war needlessly. Too many Jedi have died already. Palpatine may be about to do what the Separatists cannot: bring down the Republic. If he tries, he must be removed from office."

"Removed?" Obi-Wan stared at him. "You mean…_arrested_?"

"To a dark place this line of thought goes," Yoda murmured. "Great care we must take."

"The Republic _is_ civilisation, the only one we have," said Mace. "We must be prepared for radical action, if is our _duty_."

"But you mean…" Obi-Wan could hardly believe where this conversation was going. "You're talking about…treason..."

"I am not afraid of words, Obi-Wan!" Mace barked. "If it is treason, then so be it. The _real_ treason would be a _failure_ to act."

"This would reflect very badly on us, Mace," Nju said precariously. "How would it look to Palpatine's supporters if he were removed from office? He's already been made a hero after his capture and rescue, they are not going to see this in the same light as we do."

"Lost the trust of the public we have already," Yoda pointed out.

"No disrespect meant," Mace interjected, "but that's a politician's argument. We cannot let public opinion stop us from doing what is right."

"Convinced this is right I am not," Yoda asserted. "Working behind the scenes we must be to uncover Sidious. If move against Palpatine while the Sith do exist, not only disbanded we will be but _outlawed_."

Mace was almost on his feet. "But waiting give the Sith the advantage—"

"Have the advantage they already do!" argued Yoda, waving his gimer stick for Mace to sit back down. "_Increase_ their advantage we will if in haste we act!"

"What do you think?" Obi-Wan suddenly asked Renust Nju.

Both Mace and Yoda fell silent to listen to this.

"It has been my firm belief for quite some time that eventually the Sith will overstep and reveal himself," Nju answered. "But that doesn't mean we should do nothing."

"I agree," Obi-Wan said, "perhaps there is a middle way."

"Ah yes, Kenobi the negotiator," Mace said dryly, settling back down on his pod.

"So sure of your skills, you are?" teased Yoda. "Not easy to negotiate this matter is."

"It seems to me that Palpatine himself has given us an opening," Obi-Wan began carefully. "He has said so himself that General Grievous is the obstacle to peace. If we work on locating Grievous it will force the hand of the Sith Lord for he knows that Grievous cannot elude us for very long. This will draw Sidious out if he wants the war to continue."

"If?" Mace asked blankly. "This war has been a Sith operation from the very beginning, with Dooku at one side and Sidious on the other. And it has always been aimed at the Jedi, to bleed us dry of our youngest and our best and make us into something we were never meant to be."

"But we understand now the goals of the Sith Lord," Obi-Wan added. "We know his tactics, and we know where to look for him. His actions will reveal him, he _will not_ escape us."

Yoda and Mace looked at Obi-Wan, obviously impressed.

"Seen to the heart of the matter, young Kenobi has," Yoda murmured.

"Yoda, Renust and I need to remain on Coruscant," Mace said after a pause. "We need to continue Dooku's interrogation and monitor Palpatine's lackeys and advisers."

"How is that going?" Obi Wan asked. "The interrogation, I mean."

"Very slow," Nju told him. "You're welcome to sit in for the next session, if you like."

"I will," Obi-Wan said with a nod.

"But who will capture Grievous?" Renust Nju asked. "He is more than a match for anyone, or so I am told."

"We'll worry about that when we find him," Obi-Wan replied. "Qui-Gon once told me that until the possible becomes the actual it is just a distraction."


	7. Chapter 7

Utapau. A planet of deserts, yet unlike Tatooine its surface was pockmarked with round crevasses known as sink-holes. These sinkholes were the primary source of water and where life was concentrated.

It was formerly a neutral world near the mid section of the Rimma Trade Route, but neutrality was laughable during the Clone Wars. A planet only remained neutral if neither the Republic nor the Separatists were interested in it.

In Utapau's case, it was the latter. The planet had been occupied by Separatist forces for quite some time. Yet not noticeably, there lay the trickery of it. From space Utapau looked as neutral as it was depicted in the Republic starcharts, its secret only known to those who resided there.

General Grievous thought of none of this when his shuttle landed on the planet's surface. Utapau to him was a staging post, and a temporary one at that. Several of his magna guards met him on the landing platform.

"Sir, the planet is secure," one of the droids told him.

"Excellent," Grievous murmured. "And where is the Separatist council?"

"They will shortly be leaving, General," the droid said, showing him to a waiting liftcar.

----------------------------

Fortunately for Grievous the Separatist council would not be on Utapau for much longer. As per Sidious's orders the bunch of snivellers and wheedlers were being shipped off to Mustafar. Where it was did not concern Grievous, as long as they were not here and in his way.

Yet now the most contemptible of all stood right in front of him: Nute Gunray, Viceroy of the Trade Federation.

"Gunray, why are you not with the others?" Grievous growled.

"Some things should be said in private, General," Gunray replied. "I am disturbed by this new move. You told us that Utapau would be safe for us. Why is the Leadership Council being moved to Mustafar?"

Grievous sighed, cursing all Neimoidians and their works. He did not have time to set things out in black and white as needed to be done for the petulant Viceroy as he was expecting a call from Darth Sidious. The Sith Lord did _not_ like to be kept waiting.

One day he would kill them all, Gunray and all his mob and pay no heed to what Sidious said. But not now, today was not that day.

"I explained to you, Viceroy," Grievous said with laboured patience, "Utapau is a hostile world under occupation and was never intended to be more than a stopgap while the defences on Mustafar were being completed. Now that they are Mustafar is the most secure place in the galaxy, it could withstand an attack from the entire Republic Navy."

"It better," muttered Gunray. "The construction of it nearly bankrupted the Trade Federation."

"Don't whine to me about money, Viceroy. I have no interest in it."

"You better start having an interest in it, General," Gunray challenged. "It's my _money_ that finances this entire war! It's my _money_ that pays for that disgusting body you have and those insanely expensive magna guards of yours! It's my _money—_"

By this time Gunray was nose to nose with the droid general. He held his durasteel hand out for the Viceroy to stare at.

"How much good is your money against this?"

Gunray paled and backed away to a safe distance. "I…I…forgive me, General," he stammered. "I was only… I was merely telling you of my concerns in your ability to keep us safe. I…we…the Trade Federation cannot work in a climate of fear. What about the Jedi?"

"Forget the Jedi," Grievous thundered. "They do not enter into this equation."

"They will enter that _base_ soon enough."

"Impossible!" Grievous declared. "That base can stand a thousand Jedi! _Ten_ thousand."

"Do you _hear_ yourself? Are you _mad_?"

"What I am," Grievous replied, stepping dangerously close to the Viceroy again, "is unaccustomed to having my order challenged."

"We are the Leadership Council!" Gunray bellowed. "_We_ give the orders here, not you!"

"Are you certain of that?" Grievous leaned closer to Gunray so the Viceroy was forced to back away again.

"You say we'll be safer on Mustafar," the Neimoidian ventured, "but you also told us that you would deliver Palpatine to us as a hostage and he managed to escape your grip."

"Be thankful, Viceroy," said the droid general in a low growl, "that you have not yet found yourself in _my_ grip."

He turned his back on the Neimoidian, and when he did not move Grievous turned back.

"Your ship is waiting," he purred. "And if you are on it within ten seconds I'll boot you out of here so high you'll burn up on re-entry."

This was language that Gunray understood well and accordingly left. As if on cue, the hologram of Sidious appeared once Grievous was alone.

Grievous knelt, bowing his head so he could only see the hem of the Sith Lord's robes.

"Yes, Lord Sidious?"

"Have you moved the Separatist Council to Mustafar?" The Sith Lord was not known for his cordiality.

"Yes, Master. Their ship is lifting off as we speak." _It better be true_, he added in thought, _if not I'll be follow through that threat._

"Well done, my general," Sidious said, and Grievous imagined he saw the Sith Lord smile. "Now you must turn your hand to preparing our trap on Utapau. The Jedi will hunt your personally at last, I have seen to it and you must be ready for the attack."

"Yes, Master."

"I am arranging matters to give you a second chance to do my bidding, Grievous," Sidious continued. "Expect that the Jedi who will be sent after you will be Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"Kenobi?" Grievous' fists closed at the recollection. "And what of Skywalker?"

"I believe Skywalker will be…otherwise engaged," the Sith Lord said.

"I will not fail you again, my Master," Grievous assented. "Kenobi will die."

"Deal with him," Sidious ordered, "or you will be forced to deal with me."

It occurred to Grievous to question something he had not dared before, despite the consequences. "Master? If I may trouble you with boldness, why did you not allow me to kill Chancellor Palpatine? We may never get another chance."

"The time was not yet ripe, General. You must have patience," the Sith replied. "The end of the war is near, and victory is certain."

"But the capture of Count Dooku—"

"A necessary loss," Sidious interrupted. "The Jedi assume that having him will win them the war, but it will be of no consequence. Soon I will have a new apprentice…one far younger and more powerful."

Grievous bowed his head lower and the hologram disappeared.


	8. Chapter 8

What Padmé's idea of fun was, Anakin had no idea. And she was showing no signs of revealing it to him anytime soon. They had gotten onto a speeder bus, and from there to an airtaxi, then boarded a hovertrain to the entertainment sector of Coruscant.

"Where are we going?" Anakin asked her for what seemed the tenth time.

"You'll see." And that was all Padmé would say.

They got off the train and walked along the front of several buildings, only stopping to buy something from a food stand. Then they turned the corner and Anakin was met with a sea of…brown Jedi robes.

Jedi were everywhere, of all shapes, sizes, hues and species. Talking, walking around, waving lightsabers…

"Padmé, what is this?" he asked her. "Is this like some Jedi get-together that I wasn't told about?"

"Not quite," Padmé said with a smile, she went to one of the booths and spoke to the vendor.

Anakin was still staring around, what were all these Jedi doing here? Then he felt through the Force at them, there was nothing unusual. No pronounced presences in the Force that a large gathering of Jedi would have given him. He tried again, the same result. This was strange, sensing other Jedi was almost effortless and with this many it would have been easier.

"Padmé, what's going on?" She handed him a small piece of durasheet, it looked remarkably like a theatre ticket. Suddenly it hit him. "These aren't Jedi, aren't they?"

"Of course not," Padmé said, walking into the theatre. "Quick, it's starting soon."

On the way in they walked past a poster with a very good representation of Master Yoda on it. Below was one line of text: _Jedi!_

----------------------------

"You're meant to be Anakin Skywalker, aren't you?" said the Twi'lek at the door done up like Aayla Secura.

"Yeah, that's kinda like it," Anakin said, not knowing what to say.

"You just about fit it, you look a bit like him," said the Twi'lek.

Anakin raised an eyebrow. "A bit?"

"Well, enough to get by," she said. "He's a bit taller than you are, and his scar's on the other side of his face though yours is pretty nice. What did you use for it?"

"But I—"

"Come on!' laughed Padmé, pulling him in.

"She said I don't look like me!" he complained.

"Look around," Padmé suggested as they got to their seats. "There's a few in here trying to look like you."

She was right, there were a few dressed up like him. It was annoying, why were the wasting their time trying to look like him? There were better things to do than to look like someone else.

The lights darkened and a fanfare began to play below the stage. Cheers erupted form the audience as the first of the actors emerged from the wings, and the play began.

Padmé sat back to watch, revelling in the pulses of joy and elation she could feel through the Force. The audience responded as one thriving mass of positive feelings, it was slightly tempting to join in with them.

She hadn't come here for simply Anakin's sake, it was one of the ways her former Master Kuan Yin Nevu had suggested for coping with what the war put her through. And not just the present experience, but the knowledge that beings still felt, breathed, smiled, laughed even after all that had happened. The memory of the experience long after it ended was something she could always go back to, something she _knew_ that was worth fighting for.

And it wouldn't hurt Anakin to have that experience either. He apparently had a very different way of coping, and one that did not help him at all. Channelling his feelings into actions, that could be the path to raw emotion and anger which were next door to the dark side of the Force.

Yet she knew there was no way of telling Anakin this, he had to find out for himself or not at all.

----------------------------

Anakin noticed none of these things, he was focusing all his attention on the performance, particularly what was happening now. It was a lightsaber fight, well sort of. It was very well choreographed even if the performance left much to be desired. But Anakin was charitable enough to excuse this; after all they were actors, not Jedi.

They weren't bad, and the movements they went through attracted a lot of cheers and gasps from the audience. Yet there was something in their form that was unpolished, as if the actors were merely playing at what they were doing rather than actively doing it. Despite all this, it looked impressive.

Yet for some reason his interest in what was going on seemed to be dwindling. There was something else stirring at the edge of his thoughts. Something elusive…

Suddenly the scene changed, the stage was gone, the theatre was gone and all the people in it. He was in a dark room, looking around for something, trying to see…

"Padmé!"

She suddenly appeared, her lightsaber lit but held at one side. He ran to her, arms outstretched but she collapsed to the ground, bolts of blue lightning cascading over her.

_Anakin!_ she screamed at him, pain washing over her face, _Anakin…help me!_

Then the scene changed again, she was in his arms, tears running down her cheeks.

_I love you Anakin_, she whispered to him. _You have to let go._

"No…NO!"

"Anakin, are you alright?"

Padmé was looking at him, the _real_ Padmé and not the one he had seen in his vision. He tried to explain to her what he had seen, but he could barely open his mouth.

"Anakin?"

"I…uh, have to go," he said quickly, pushing past her and several others towards the aisle.

Padmé followed him, ignoring the glances at her. "Anakin?" She pushed open the door and walked into the cool lobby, Anakin was already outside looking for an airtaxi. "Anakin!" She stopped and caught his arm, yet when he turned to look at her she noticed the raw emotion apparent in his eyes.

What had happened?

"Come on, we'll go back," she said, knowing they would get no more done until they were back at the Temple.

----------------------------

Anakin was silent on the way back because he was remembered. He knew what had happened, he knew what he was seen. It was when he coupled it with the memory that made his fears rise up inside him.

He had had a vision of Padmé dying, he had watched her being killed by a Sith and then felt her die in his arms. As much as he wanted to tell himself it was a delusion, that it was not real, a small sneaking voice whispered to him to remember what had happened to his mother.

Yet Padmé was right here next to him, what were the chances of her being killed by a Sith? _How would you know?_ whispered the voice snakily.

Yet he said nothing, and Padmé seemed to respect this.

When they arrived back to the Temple she could no longer tolerate his silence.

"Anakin, you know you can talk to me," she said, clutching at the corner of his tunic. "I know there's something wrong, you can tell me."

Anakin looked at her sceptically. "You _really_ want to know?"

"If I didn't want to _know_ I wouldn't have _asked_," she replied calmly

Anakin sighed, they walked together in the night-lit Temple for a few minutes, she waited until he was prepared to speak.

"I had another one of those dreams," Anakin told her. "Well not really a dream as I was awake, but it was like before."

"Like the ones you had about your mother?" Padmé asked.

Anakin nodded, a lump forming in his throat.

"And?" Padmé gently prompted.

"_And_ it was about you," Anakin finished.

"All right," Padmé said with a sigh, "so it was about me."

"It was about you _dying_," he said in a choked voice. "I held you, you spoke to me and you died in my arms." He stared at her, his eyes red-raw like they had been before. "I couldn't stand it."

"It's all right, Anakin," Padmé reassured, but this was the wrong thing to say.

"No, it's not!" His voice came out in a strangled sob. He walked away and then turned back to look at her. "It was a Sith, the one everyone's looking for, he killed you."

"Shh, Anakin there's no need to get so upset," Padmé said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "These are things you have to control, perhaps with everything that's been going on lately it's affected you so much. It's no surprise."

"No." Anakin said, completely dismissing Padmé common-sense view of the situation. "I know what you said, and I understand that," he said, pacing before her. "But losing you, that's something I just can't…_imagine_."

Padmé watched him pace, adding no more to his anguish. She knew his reaction was perfectly normal—for Anakin anyway. Perhaps that was why he still didn't see her as a Jedi. Anakin still had emotions, he still had passions and he still had attachments and all the reasoning and Jedi serenity there was couldn't take them away.

What she had explained to Anakin seven years ago, about how she could never give herself to him, had merely kept these in reasonable boundaries. Boundaries that were starting to fail, the strain was apparent on Anakin's face.

_But this isn't the time to mend fences_, Padmé told herself, _and it isn't the time for Jedi reasoning either._ What could be done? For clearly, Anakin meant to do something.

"Anakin, you know about visions as well as I do," she said in the calmest voice she could manage. "Sometimes everything we do to try and stop them causes them to happen."

"But I can't do nothing," Anakin protested.

"No one is asking you to do nothing, Anakin," Padmé said, walking over to him and staring at him squarely. "But how can you be so sure that is what you saw?"

"But that's all it _can_ be!" Anakin whined. "There isn't any other way to look at it!"

"Isn't there?" Padmé asked. "Or do you just don't want to consider that?"

Anakin didn't look so sure

----------------------------

By morning he still wasn't convinced, and the vision troubled him still. So after a few hours of sleep he went to the first place he knew where he could get answers. He timidly knocked at the door of Master Yoda's mediation chamber and fully expected Yoda to be of no help. Surprisingly, the little Jedi Master invited him in to sit down and listened to Anakin explain the vision as best he can.

"They are of pain, suffering, death," Anakin finished, a grim silence hung in the room for a moment.

"Mmmm," murmured Yoda after a while. "Careful you must be when sensing the future, Anakin."

"I won't allow them to come true, Master Yoda," Anakin said with conviction.

"Always in motion, the future is," Yoda said as if he had not heard Anakin's last remark. "Think we can act to save those we love we do, hurts them it can if know not what we are facing."

"But isn't it obvious?" Anakin asked. "The blue lightning, Padmé told me that the Sith did such things."

"Yet so sure you are that what you saw meant her death?" Yoda countered. "Reflect our fears, visions do, show us what we do not want to see."

"But what must I do?" Anakin asked, as he had told Padmé last night, he couldn't do nothing.

"The path to the dark side, fear is," the Jedi Master reminded him. "Name your fear you must and power over you it will not have."


	9. Chapter 9

When Obi-Wan had been told he could sit in at the Dooku's next interrogation session, he didn't know what to expect. Yet what _was_ surprising was the fact that Renust Nju was conducting it and not Mace.

_Yet need I be surprised?_ Obi-Wan thought _Mace and Dooku were friends, perhaps he thinks that will cloud his judgment_.

The interrogation was conducted in the lower levels of the Temple, in the small rooms that were fitted with materials to absorb the Force. Even so, both Obi-Wan and Nju were prepared to defend each other and the silver protocol droid brought to record the session could be instantly armed.

When Dooku was brought in Obi-Wan noticed the thinness and colourlessness of his face even though he had not been held for very long. Yet this did not disguise the calculated, almost defiant light in his eyes as he sat down. Obi-Wan was almost glad for the table separating himself and Nju from the former Jedi even though there was little chance of Dooku attacking them.

Renust Nju signalled for the droid to begin recording, and the session began.

"I asked yesterday about Sidious and you refused to give me any answers as to how you met him," Nju said, he took out a datasheet and began to examine it. "Today we'll be referring to actual evidence, we know that you communicated with Sidious during the conference on Imbroglio seven years ago."

"How do you know it was me?" Dooku asked mildly.

"We can put two and two together," Nju replied calmly. "We have a record of the transmission from Imbroglio as well as a record corresponding to an abandoned factory in The Works where we know Sidious has been."

"What I mean is, how do you know that _I_ made that transmission?" Dooku queried. "Viceroy Nute Gunray has been known having dealing with Sith Lords, could it not likely be him?"

"I am not asking about him," stated Nju, blankly. "I am asking about _you_. So this is a denial then, you say you did not correspond with Sidious then?"

"Well you seem to have already made up your mind about what I did and did not do," said Dooku with a slight smile. "So it makes no difference on my account whether I say yes or no."

"Just answer the question," Nju snapped.

"My answer is no," Dooku replied airily. "Not that it matters anyway."

"Very well." Nju turned to the next item on the datasheet. "I'm now referring to some evidence we discovered in that same factory in The Works where your boot-prints have matched some found there. What do you make of this?"

"The fact that I wear boots?" Dooku laughed. "You wear boots yourself, don't you? As do you Obi-Wan and I don't know how many others. Would it occur to you that my boots may be the same as someone else's?"

Nju remained unperturbed but Obi-Wan politely excused himself. He had to see to the briefing and the session had all signs of being very long.

----------------------------

"I still say we're taking an awful risk, Bail," said Mon Mothma. "We still don't know the Jedi's stance on this."

"All the better to find out," Bail replied.

Mon Mothma stared at him, frown lines furrowing her face. She was the newest addition to the still functioning Loyalist Committee as well as the youngest. The daughter of the Governor of Chandrilla, her voice carried far in the Senate despite her youth and inexperience. At times she could be cordial, even warm but now she was as amiable as a block of ice and as cold.

Also present was Danta Pela, more grown into his position as Senator of Naboo even though he still had his detractors. He could not replace Nalanda, but Bail was glad to have him on board nonetheless. He could be counted to stand among those to do what was right.

And it was Danta who suggested that they should approach the Jedi, something that Organa had been reluctant to consider at first. Yet the new security measures passed following Palpatine's rescue had forced him to reconsider.

"Look, I know you have reservations," he explained to Mon. "I have some myself, but we are going to get much further with the moral authority of the Jedi on our side."

"But will they choose our side?" she asked him. "How do you know the Jedi will not side with the Chancellor?"

Bail was prevented from answering this question when his aide announced Padmé.

Padmé cordially greeted Senator Organa, yet she still did not know what to expect from this meeting. Senator Mothma was introduced, and pleasantries were exchanged. Finally, Bail dismissed his aides and the protocol droid and looked at Padmé seriously.

"I hate asking this, but I must request for you to be discreet of what will be discussed here," he said.

"As a Jedi there are some…limits to my discretion," Padmé explained. "But I will do everything I can."

Mon Mothma flashed Bail a frosty look, Padmé noticed this and politely ignored it. What was going on here?

"I assume that you have seen the new security act that was passed yesterday?" Bail asked her.

"Yes, the Chancellor now has control over the Jedi Council," Padmé said. "It sounds a bit… extreme."

"Extreme?" Mon Mothma asked. "Far from it, it seems to be the pattern of what Palpatine is doing lately. This morning he posted a decree to appoint governors to oversee all star systems."

"Theysa under his control," Danta explained.

"I am sure he has his reasons…" Padmé said but Bail cut her off.

"The reason I asked you here, Padmé is that there is only so much we can do as Senators," Bail told her.

"Even less," Mon Mothma added. "As of this morning, the Senate no longer exists as a practical matter."

"Yet the Jedi represent the public face of the war," Bail continued. "Particularly certain Jedi."

_He's talking about Anakin_, Padmé realised, _and Anakin's the first one to object to someone speaking against Palpatine_.

"We need to know where the Jedi stand with this," Mon intoned. "We are not Separatists trying to leave the Republic. We are loyalists, trying to preserve democracy in the Republic."

"And the Chancellor is increasingly becoming the enemy of democracy," Organa finished. "Are not the Jedi _obliged_ to act if the democracy of the Republic is threatened?"

"Well, yes," Padmé replied uncertainly. "The problem is, Senator, that those rules have become somewhat blurred of late. Yet there are some who would argue that at a time of war the Republic needs strong, centralised leadership. Even some among the Jedi would say that."

"What yousa think?" Danta asked suddenly.

Padmé considered this for a moment. "I've seen this war firsthand," she said. "And I don't want it to continue another moment more than necessary, even if that means making certain sacrifices. But," she added cautiously, "who is to say that these security measures won't continue after the war is over? It has happened before on other systems on a smaller scale, there's no reason that it couldn't happen in this case."

"That is exactly what _we_ fear," Bail agreed. "We cannot let a thousand years of democracy disappear without a fight."

"A fight?" Padmé asked incredulously. "But…what are you suggesting?"

"It may seem a little 'extreme' as you have said," Mon Mothma interjected. "But we need to know if the Jedi are willing to stand with us."

Padmé wasn't sure what to answer. And how could they be told that the integrity of the Jedi could not be depended upon?

----------------------------

Anakin searched the Temple for Padmé, he needed to see her before the briefing started. Yet she wasn't to be found. Not in her room, and no one he asked had seen her since last night.

He was about to give up his search when he heard the familiar sound of shifting gears. Anakin sighed, he had been trying to avoid C-3PO as the droid reminded him too much of his mother. Yet somehow Threepio always seemed to find him. He was no longer as battered like when Anakin had brought him from Tatooine, yet the slight nervousness that Threepio seemed to permeate remained.

"Oh, Master Anakin!" trilled the protocol droid. "It is such a relief that you are undamaged."

"Thank you, Threepio," said Anakin in a _very_ patient voice.

"Artoo was just explaining to me what you have been through," Threepio went on. "And it seems a positive _wonder_ that you are alive, though Artoo has been known to exaggerate."

Artoo seemed to not like this, he emerged from behind Threepio making a rude noise.

"Careful, Artoo," warned C-3PO, "how many times have I told you to watch your language? No blame to you, Master Anakin, but it seems as if Artoo has picked up a few bad habits in his travels."

"Give him a bit more credit, Threepio," Anakin pleaded, then something occurred to him. "You haven't seen Padmé, have you?"

"No, I am afraid I have not, Master Anakin," replied the protocol droid but R2-D2 chattered

excitedly. "He says he saw Padmé leaving quite early this morning," Threepio translated. "Quite urgently, he says."

"Does he know where she was going?" Anakin asked.

Artoo warbled mournfully.

"Artoo says—" Threepio began but Anakin interrupted him, he didn't need a translation.

"Thanks, Artoo, I need to be going." Anakin quickly left them without further warning.

Artoo mumbled a question to his taller counterpart.

"No, I don't know at all what is bothering Master Anakin," Threepio answered. "But I have a fair idea that it is all your fault."

Artoo objected to this.

"Stupid little short circuit!" retorted Threepio, jerkily moving to kick the astromech droid but Artoo quickly moved out of his way. "Come back here!" called Threepio, walking jerkily after the whistling Artoo.

----------------------------

The briefing was almost over when Anakin saw Padmé politely shuffle past several knees to take her seat. Thereafter that he completely lost interest in what Obi-Wan was saying, his thoughts were on Padmé and why she had turned up so late. Was it anything to do with what Senator Organa said yesterday?

With a start Anakin suddenly realised the briefing was over, Jedi were beginning to disperse so Anakin made his way over to Padmé. She merely smiled at him, walking over to where Obi-Wan was shutting down the holoprojector.

"I need to talk to you," she said.

"Can you wait a moment?" Obi-Wan asked, he turned to Anakin. "The Chancellor has requested your presence."

"What for?" asked Anakin.

"He didn't say," Obi-Wan told him. "His shuttle merely arrived not long ago with the summons."

"He didn't inform the Jedi Council?" queried Anakin. "That's unusual."

"It is," agreed Obi-Wan. "And it's making me feel uneasy." He regarded Anakin seriously, walking close and talking in a low voice. "Be careful of your friend Palpatine."

"Be careful?" Anakin asked. "What do you mean?"

"I know you are a friend of his but he may not be a friend of yours," Obi-Wan explained.

"I know the Council has grown wary of the Chancellor's power," Anakin said, "mine also for that matter. Aren't we all working together to save the Republic? Why all this distrust?"

Obi-Wan didn't answer straight away, he glanced at Padmé briefly with a worried expression. "Relations between the Council and the Chancellor are…strained," he explained feebly.

"But what does that have to do with me?" Anakin demanded.

"The Force grows dark, Anakin," Obi-Wan told him, "and we are all affected by it. Be wary of your feelings."

When Anakin had gone Obi-Wan let his displeasure of this meeting with the Chancellor show. He looked at Padmé. "You can see that I still have reservations about this friendship," he told her. "Yet I know of no way of explaining that to him."

"Anakin sees Palpatine like father-figure," Padmé asserted with a smile. "Much in the same way he views you."

"I know, I know, and that's what worries me," Obi-Wan said. "Would you be able to talk to him?"

"I don't really think it's my place, Obi-Wan," Padmé told him

"You have a lot more influence with Anakin that you realise," Obi-Wan pointed out. "As I told you, I've tried to talk to him about it many times but he wouldn't listen. He's…well _blinded_ by his own views of the Chancellor that he refuses to see him as he really is."

"I've seen that too," Padmé noted. "What makes you think he'll listen to me?"

"I don't know, but it may sound better coming from you than from me," Obi-Wan admitted. "But don't tell him I said this, it may have some…unexpected effects."

"I'll do my best," Padmé promised and Obi-Wan knew his doubts were satisfied.

"So, what is you wanted to talk to me about?" he asked her.

"I don't really know how much I can say," Padmé explained. "But I felt I needed to say something, it's about the new system of regional governors."

"From what I hear they were passed by considerable acclamation," remarked Obi-Wan, but they both knew what that _really_ meant. "You are saying that you have reservations about this? I have some myself and I am not the only one who thinks that way."

"You mean there are those among the Council who disagree with Palpatine's policies?" Padmé asked.

"Well…yes," admitted Obi-Wan uncertainly, not sure where this was going. He decided to be completely frank with her. "Padmé, you know there is only so much I can say about the Council. I would like to be completely honest with you, but I can't."

"I understand that, Obi-Wan," Padmé said. "But that isn't the reason I approached you. It's just been…well, revealed to me that something's going to happen."

"What are you talking about?" the Jedi Master asked.

"I don't really know myself," Padmé confessed. "But we may have to choose sides. We may have to consider doing the _right_ thing and not what we have to do."

Obi-Wan was speechless, it was more or less what Mace had told him yesterday afternoon. But how could she know that?


	10. Chapter 10

When Anakin entered the Chancellor's office he found the politician at the long window examining the scarred cityscape. At Palpatine's invitation Anakin joined him, the young Jedi noticed the Chancellor's sad expression at what he saw.

"Terrible, is it?" Palpatine remarked sadly.

"They'll never destroy us completely, Your Excellency," Anakin reassured. "The Republic will prevail, the Jedi are determined."

"Oh, I have no doubt that we will win the war, Anakin," Palpatine said. "But as for the Jedi, they may have their own ideas about how to go about it."

To Anakin, this sounded rather odd. "Your Excellency?" He watched the politician pace before coming to stop behind his desk.

"Anakin, the Senate has called me to take direct control of the Jedi Council," Palpatine told him.

"The Jedi will no longer report to the Senate?" Anakin asked.

"They will report to me…personally." Palpatine looked up with a resigned expression. "The Senate is too unfocused to conduct the war. This will bring a quick end to things."

"Oh, I agree," said Anakin loyally. "But not all the Jedi will see it that way."

"Sacrifices must be made, Anakin," Palpatine reminded him. "Even the Jedi must understand that."

"Yes," Anakin agreed reluctantly. "But will all do respect, Your Excellency, I don't think the Council is in the mood for any other constitutional amendments."

"I know that, but I have no choice," said the Chancellor with dignity. "This war must be won."

"Well, no one can dispute that," remarked Anakin.

For a moment he studied the Chancellor and wondered how the Separatists could even _consider_ they had a chance of defeating the Republic with someone like Palpatine at the forefront? Anakin just didn't understand those who insisted that the Chancellor was abusing his position, that being in power as long as he had been had made him grow comfortable in his role and taking any measure possible to keep it.

_They don't know him like I do_, Anakin thought, _they don't know that Palpatine doesn't want to be Chancellor a day longer than he feels he needs to_.

"But I didn't call you here to discuss politics, Anakin," said Palpatine. "I can get that anytime I like, I called you here because…well, I need your help, son."

"_My_ help?" Anakin examined Palpatine thoughtfully, what could he mean by this?

"I fear the Jedi," he confessed. "The Council keeps pushing for more control. They're shrouded in secrecy and obsessed with maintaining their autonomy. Ideals I find simply incomprehensible in a democracy."

"I assure you, Your Excellency that the dedication of the Jedi to the Republic is unquestioned," Anakin asserted.

"That may be the case," said Palpatine doubtfully. "But actions speak louder than words. I am depending on you."

"But I don't understand," Anakin said uncertainly. "What are you asking me to do?"

"I'm appointing you to be my personal representative on the Jedi Council," answered Palpatine.

"Me?" Anakin said incredulously. "A _Master_?" For a moment he was stunned, unable to think at all. Yet gradually he could see himself taking his place among the other twelve Jedi Masters. Perhaps sitting next to Obi-Wan, or opposite Yoda!

"Who else?" admitted Palpatine with a shrug. "You are the only Jedi I know I can trust. I need you to be my eyes and ears on the Council and the voice of the Republic."

"But the Council elects its own members," Anakin protested. "They will never accept this."

"I think they will, they will have no choice," said Palpatine, he placed a hand on Anakin's shoulder. "They need you more than you realise. All it would take is for someone to _explain_ it properly to them."

----------------------------

Before his appointment to the Jedi Council Obi-Wan had known what went on behind its closed doors only by reputation. He had assumed that the Jedi Masters considered the appropriate decision from the currents of the Force and acted accordingly.

Yet argument was often the rule in a Council session rather than the exception. And in this case he seemed to be on the opposite end of one to Yoda and Mace Windu. What was at stake here was Anakin's own elevation to the Council and to Mastership. While the idea of it had made Obi-Wan's heart soar with pride at his former Padawan learner, it was the reasons for this that forced him firmly against it.

"I don't understand your reservations, Obi-Wan," Mace Windu averred. "Don't you trust Anakin?"

"Of course I trust him," Obi-Wan said, rather annoyed that Mace would doubt this. "There has never been a question of that, Anakin can always be trusted to do what he thinks is _right_. But he can't be trusted to do what he's _told_, he won't be made to simply _obey_. Believe me, I've tried for many years."

"Yet it must be said that Palpatine himself has given us a unique opportunity," Renust Nju pointed out. "He has given us a way to see into the workings of his office, we cannot close our eyes to this chance."

"Then we should you someone else's eyes," argued Obi-Wan. "Forgive me, but none of you know him like I do. Anakin is _fiercely_ loyal to his friends. How can we ask him to lie to a friend, to _spy_ on him?"

"Which is why we must ask a friend to approach him with this," asserted Agen Kolar.

"But you don't understand," said Obi-Wan in exasperation, "you _can't_ make him choose between me and Palpatine—"

"Why not?" interrupted Renust Nju mildly. "Do you think you would lose such a contest?"

"Obi-Wan, haven't you your own reservations about Anakin's friendship with Palpatine?" queried Kuan Yin.

"Yes, I have and I still do," replied Obi-Wan. "But this is not the way to go about it. You're asking him to use that friendship as a weapon, to stab him in the back. Can't you understand what it will cost him if Palpatine is innocent? Their relationship will never be the same—"

"And that may be the best argument in favour of this plan," Mace interrupted. "Anything that might distance Skywalker from the Chancellor is well worth the attempt."

At that moment Obi-Wan realised how useless it was to continue arguing.

"I will, of course, abide by the ruling of the Council," he said in a low tone.

"Doubt that, none of us do," Yoda remarked. "But if done this is, decide we must how best to use him."

Obi-Wan could feel an awful gnawing feeling in his stomach. _Anakin, I'm sorry_, he pleaded silently, _I did my best_.


	11. Chapter 11

Anakin paced before the doors before the Jedi Council chamber like a caged sand panther. Would the Council go along with this? Would Mace Windu? Would Yoda? Neither of them was accustomed to having his authority questioned And while Anakin could count on Obi-Wan to side with him that may be one voice among many.

And what would happen if they refused to grant him Mastery? If they said that Palpatine's jurisdiction did not extend having his own representation on the Council? Could he simple bite his tongue and accept the Council's ruling like he always did? Somehow, Anakin didn't think he would be able to do that this time.

The doors opened and Anakin entered. For a moment he looked around the room but Obi-Wan averted his gaze and Kuan Yin looked impassive. He would have no help from either of them. He turned to face Mace Windu and Yoda.

"Anakin Skywalker," said Windu, pausing for what seemed an eternity. "We have approved your appointment to the Council as the Chancellor's personal representative."

Anakin could feel a smile breaking over his face. Palpatine was right! They _had_ given in, they _did_ need him. He bowed his head respectfully.

"I will do my best to uphold the principles of the Jedi Order," he said with as much humility as he could. _Me, on the Council!_ he thought with excitement, _wait until I tell Padmé…_

"Allow this appointment lightly, the Council does not," Yoda murmured. "Disturbing is this move by Chancellor Palpatine."

"I understand," Anakin replied, he knew there would be a few ruffled feathers in his being on the Council, but the important thing was that he was there. He had _won_!

"I'm not sure you do." Mace Windu leaned forward and examined Anakin critically. "You are on this Council, but we do not grant you the rank of Master."

These words brought Anakin's thoughts to a screeching halt.

"What!" The anger, since subsided, rose up in him again with unprecedented fury. "How can you do this? This is outrageous, it's _unfair_…I'm more powerful than any of you! How can you be on the Council and not be a Master?"

"The Chancellor's representative you are," admonished Yoda harshly. "As his representative you shall attend the Council. Sit in this chamber you will but no vote will you have. The Chancellor's views you represent, his wishes, his ideas and directives, _not_ your own."

"This is an insult to me, and to the Chancellor!" Anakin roared. "Do not imagine it will be tolerated!"

Mace Windu gave him a stare that looked as if it would penetrate durasteel. "Take a seat, young Skywalker."

_Perhaps I'll take yours_, Anakin added in thought, his eyes looking to give off dangerous sparks, _you sit there and you think you know everything, well let me tell you something…_

"Anakin." Obi-Wan's soft voice penetrated his thoughts. "Please." He gestured to the empty seat.

And it with these words, this simple request that quelled Anakin's anger. He was left feeling ashamed, vulnerable, and very, very foolish.

He inclined his head, hoping to hide his reddened face.

"Forgive me, Masters."

And took his seat without another word.

The rest of the session passed quickly, Anakin paid little attention. Ki-Adi-Mundi's hologram made a comment about how there was little sign of Grievous and the decision was made for Obi-Wan to hunt him alone.

This hurt more than anything else. How could Obi-Wan go and _he_ had to stay behind? Yet he sat silently, knowing that his opinion was neither wanted nor welcome.

Mace Windu closed the session with a 'May the Force be with us all' and the Jedi Masters started to disperse. The holograms of Ki-Adi-Mundi and Plo Koon disappeared and the others started to leave the room.

Anakin remained where he was, staring at the wall. Alone with his whirling thoughts and emotions.

----------------------------

Later when he was again looking for Padmé, Obi-Wan found him first. Anakin took this as an opportunity to vent all his frustrations.

"What kind of nonsense is this, put me on the Council and not make me a Master?" he demanded. "That's _never_ been done in the history of the Jedi! It's _insulting_!"

"Calm down, Anakin," Obi-Wan pleaded. "You've been given a great honour, don't forget that. To be on the Council at your age…it's never happened before." He stopped and regarded the young Jedi seriously. "The fact is that your friendship with Palpatine is being brought into question and that giving you a vote would be giving one to Palpatine himself."

"I don't have time for this," Anakin said impatiently. "I didn't _ask_ for this, I don't _need_ this—"

"But it's what you wanted, isn't it?" Obi-Wan interrupted. "Don't try to deny it; your friendship with the Chancellor seems to have paid off."

"That has _nothing_ to do with this!" Anakin retorted.

"Anakin it doesn't matter _how_ it happened," Obi-Wan said, "you're now in a very delicate situation."

"You mean divided loyalties," Anakin flashed.

Obi-Wan slapped his forehead in frustration. "_Why_ didn't you listen to me when I told there was tension between the Chancellor and the Council?" he moaned. "You walked _right_ into it! Should I have expected anything else?"

"The Council just upset because I'm now the youngest to serve," Anakin argued. "Is Master Windu turning everyone against me because before _I_ came _he_ was the youngest ever appointed to the Council?"

"That's not true, Anakin," Obi-Wan told him, shaking his head decidedly. "I worry when you speak of jealousy and pride. Those are not Jedi thoughts, they're dangerous, dark thoughts."

"Master, you of all people should have confidence in my abilities." Anakin clenched his fists in frustration. "Who saved Naboo? Who brought you to Imbroglio so we could save Padmé? What about saving Kamino? And Avingnon? And rescuing you from Ventress? And—"

"Anakin, Anakin, no one is questioning what you have done," Obi-Wan said in exasperation. "It is your relationship with Palpatine that has been brought into question and it is a very _serious_ problem."

"I know where my loyalties lie," Anakin retorted.

"I hope so," murmured Obi-Wan, "I hope so."

"So." Anakin folded his arms across his chest. "What do they want me to do?"

"I'm sorry?" Obi-Wan stared at him.

"They want something from me, don't they?" Anakin demanded. "That's _really_ what this is all about, isn't it? They put me on the Council so I can give them what they want."

"The Council doesn't operate that way, Anakin," Obi-Wan reminded him. "Even _you_ know that."

"Yes I know, but that doesn't mean they don't want something." Anakin unfolded his arms. "Just tell me what they want."

Obi-Wan sighed and glanced up and down the corridor to make sure they were alone.

"Anakin, the only reason the Council has approved your appointment is because the Chancellor trusts you," Obi-Wan began.

"And?" Anakin prompted.

"Look Anakin, I am on your side." Obi-Wan put a hand on his shoulder. "I didn't want to see you put in this situation."

"What situation?"

Obi-Wan hesitated.

"Whatever it is, it's not going to get any better by your standing there working up the nerve to tell me," Anakin said. "So come on, Obi-Wan, let's have it."

Obi-Wan took a deep breath. "The Council wants you to report on all of the Chancellor's dealings. They want to know what he's up to, who he talks to and what he says."

"They want me to _spy_ on the Chancellor?" Obi-Wan didn't answer. "But that's…that's _treason_!"

"We are at war, Anakin," Obi-Wan replied emotionlessly. "The Council is sworn to uphold the principles of the Republic through any means necessary. We _have_ to, especially when it seems the greatest enemy of democracy is the Supreme Chancellor himself."

Something occurred to Anakin. "Why didn't the Council give me this assignment when we were in session?"

"Because it's not for the record, Anakin," Obi-Wan told him. "You must be able to understand why. They asked me to approach you on this personally."

"What I understand," said Anakin slowly, "is that you are trying to turn me against Palpatine. You're trying to make me keep secrets from him, you want to make me _lie_ to him. That's what this is really all about, isn't it?"

"It's not," insisted Obi-Wan tightly. "It's about keeping an eye on who he deals with and who deals with him."

"He's not a bad man, Obi-Wan," Anakin defended. "He's holding the Republic together with his bare hands—"

"By staying in office long after his term has expired," the Jedi Master reminded him. "By gathering _dictatorial_ powers—"

"The Senate _demanded_ that he stay!" Anakin retorted. "They _pushed_ those powers onto him!"

"Don't be naïve, Anakin!" Obi-Wan admonished. "The Senate is so intimidated that they give him whatever he wants!"

"Then it's _their_ fault, not _his_!" Anakin argued. "_They_ should stand up to him."

"That is what we are asking _you_ to do, Anakin," Obi-Wan pleaded.

For a moment Anakin didn't answer, he stared past Obi-Wan and tried to give some sort of defence that would get his former Master to give in. "He's my _friend_, Obi-Wan," he said at last.

"Yes, yes, I know," Obi-Wan sadly, placing a hand on Anakin's shoulder. _So much the worse_, he added in thought.

"If he asked me to spy on _you_, do you think I would do it?" Anakin demanded.

Obi-Wan didn't answer.

"You're asking me to do something against the Jedi Code, against the Republic, against a mentor… and a friend," Anakin said. "Why are you asking this of me?"

Obi-Wan didn't look at him. "The Council is asking you."

----------------------------

Padmé headed through the Temple, not seeing anyone, her focus on her own thoughts. How could it be that so much had happened in so little time? Was it only yesterday afternoon that she and Anakin had emerged from the _Invisible Hand_ with Obi-Wan? It seemed a lifetime ago, what with Obi-Wan confiding his worries about Anakin and seeing Danta and Bail Organa that morning.

So intent on her thoughts she almost walked into C-3PO as the protocol droid came around the corner with his short, stumpy counterpart.

"Oh, Mistress Padmé!" The droid made a worried gesture with his hands. "I do hope you are unhurt."

"I'm fine, Threepio," Padmé said with a smile. "No harm done."

"One has to be sure," Threepio said with another flourish. "I do consider myself to be quite clumsy and perhaps that is why Master Anakin has left me here."

Padmé grinned again, Anakin had told her the real reason he had left Threepio at the Temple was that the droid constantly got on his nerves at the worst moments. Yet C-3PO did have his merits, some of which were being employed for Jedi intelligence purposes.

He was considerably more presentable than when Anakin had brought him back from Tatooine. His dented metal body now shone with a gold hue that was almost blinding.

"Do you find you're duties here satisfying, Threepio?" Padmé asked conversationally.

"Well, that is a matter of taste, Miss Padmé," confided the droid. "My primary functions are in protocol and etiquette, but it seems they are somewhat secondary to the other measures I find myself employed in. It has been better since you arrived," Threepio added, "Artoo and I, as well as several other droids and intelligence officers, have been extracting data from the _Invisible Hand_."

"That's wonderful," Padmé said, and she meant it as it could only help the war effort, but Threepio took the compliment personally.

"Oh, thank you Miss Padmé," trilled the protocol droid. "It does give me pleasure to know that my efforts are not wasted. And I must say—"

Artoo took this moment to chirp a comment that caused Threepio to stop short. Padmé had to stifle a laugh, sometimes the little astromech could be very astute.

"What is it Artoo?" demanded Threepio.

Artoo mumbled something and beeped softly.

"Oh, oh yes." Threepio turned from his counterpart to look at Padmé. "I must tell you that Master Anakin is looking for you. He seemed quite anxious to find you this morning."

"Was he?" This was of no surprise to Padmé. "Do you know where he is?"

"I'm not quite sure," Threepio replied. "I saw him earlier but he pushed past me without another word, which seemed quite odd as I heard that he was given a position on the Jedi Council."

_What?_ This was a complete surprise to Padmé. _Yet why is Anakin so upset about it?_ she asked herself as the protocol droid continued talking, _but it seems a little sudden…_

Padmé quickly interrupted him. "Um, Threepio?"

"Yes Miss Padmé?"

"Which way did he go?"

"That way." Threepio gestured.

"Thank you."

"You're perfectly welcome." But Padmé was already gone.

----------------------------

She found Anakin in the map room, examining a holographic readout of Tatooine. He didn't say anything when she came in, merely scanned through the various items of data and muttering how life used to be so much simpler.

"Anakin?" Padmé approached him. "Threepio told me how you're on the Council now. That's _amazing_, I'm so _proud_ and Obi-Wan must be too."

"Obi-Wan is like the rest of them," Anakin murmured.

"Sorry?"

Anakin slid down onto the floor, Padmé sat next to him.

"Anakin, what's wrong?" she asked.

"I may be on the Council, but…" he looked up at her, "they refused to accept me as a Jedi Master."

"But _why_?" This had never occurred before in the Order. Surely there were reasons…

"I'm only on there because of Palpatine, Padmé," he explained to her. "He said he wanted me to be the voice of the Republic on the Council, help them do the _right_ things but they refuse to recognise me."

"Anakin you must have patience," Padmé advised. "In time they will recognise your skills. But before that you've got to ask why you are on the Council at all."

"But I know that," Anakin told her. "Palpatine said—"

"I know what Palpatine said," Padmé interrupted. "But why has he chosen _you_?"

"Because he trusts me," Anakin retorted. "And those on the Council don't."

Padmé realised that she was getting nowhere and wondered why Obi-Wan had approached her at all. But she wasn't done yet.

"Anakin, try and see this from Obi-Wan's point of view," Padmé pleaded, she had managed to do this before so there was no harm in doing so again. "On one hand there's the war where Grievous stands in the way of the end, on the other hand you've got Palpatine with his stringent security measures that go against everything the Republic and the Jedi Order stand for." She paused. "And then there's the Jedi right in the middle of it all trying to hold everything together." She glanced up at Anakin. "Would I be right in guessing that Obi-Wan didn't want to put you in this position?"

"Yes," replied Anakin, "but how did you know?"

"Because he would rather you stayed out of it all and has no choice but to go along," Padmé told him with a dry smile.

"So where does that leave me?" Anakin demanded.

For a moment Anakin was silent. "Anakin, I don't know exactly what Obi-Wan asked you to do and I'm not going to ask," she said. "But whatever it is, he would never have asked you to do it if he knew it would turn out bad for you in the end."

"But the Chancellor befriended me—" Anakin protested but Padmé cut him off.

"I know, Anakin," she said as she got to her feet. "And maybe that's why Obi-Wan didn't want to ask you to do this. But the fact is he _has_ and there is another reason for it other than the one you think."

She left him then to ponder these words, not looking back.


	12. Chapter 12

In another part of the Temple, Obi-Wan, Mace, Yoda and Nju sat in discussion. From where they were, quite high in one of the spires beneath the Council chamber, they could see the steady thrum of air traffic pass by. Obi-Wan normally found this calming, but not today.

"Anakin did not take to his assignment with much enthusiasm," he said.

"Too much under the sway of the Chancellor, he is," observed Yoda.

"You weren't there," Obi-Wan argued. "You didn't see his face. I think we've done a terrible thing."

"We don't always have a right answer," countered Nju gently. "Sometimes there isn't a right answer."

"Sometimes we have to _be_ answers," Mace added.

"Know how important your friendship with young Anakin is, I do," murmured Yoda. "But allow such attachments to pass out of life, a Jedi must."

Obi-Wan gave a long sigh. "I suppose," he said resignedly. "He is the Chosen One, after all. The prophecy says that he was to bring balance to the Force, but…" Obi-Wan's voice trailed off, all he could think of was Anakin's face.

"Yes, always in motion the future is," stated Yoda. "And the prophecy, misread it could have been."

"And we still don't know what bringing balance to the Force might mean," Nju reminded them. "We have no way of anticipating this or knowing what it might involve."

"An infinite mystery is the Force," agreed Yoda. "The more we learn the more we discover how much we do not know."

There was another moment of silence.

"I should have argued more strongly in Council, today," Obi-Wan said, yet knowing his words were hollow.

"Much anger there is in young Anakin," Yoda remarked. "Too much pride in his powers."

"It's very dangerous, putting them together," noted Mace. "I don't think the boy can handle it. I don't trust him."

"He'll be all right," Obi-Wan reassured. "I trust him with my life."

"I wish I did," said Windu.

"But that is precisely the problem," Obi-Wan complained. "For Anakin, there is nothing more important than friendship. He is the most loyal man I have ever met, loyal beyond all reason. Despite all that I have tried to teach him about how sacrifices are at the heart of being a Jedi, it is never something that I think he will understand."

"I thought you had confidence in his abilities," Nju said.

"I do, I do," Obi-Wan replied. "He will not let me down. He never has. The problem is," here he fell silent again, remembering Anakin's face, "that after what we have done to him today I don't think he'll ever trust us again. And," he added cautiously, "I'm not entirely sure he should."

----------------------------

On the landing platform of the Alderaanian consulate, Bail Organa waited nervously. He had had several serious talks with Mon Mothma, Danta and other influential senators for most of the day and his arguments had hit home with them.

But what they needed, as Danta had said from the very beginning, were some 'big guns' so what they proposed had weight. The Jedi could be one of these, but he was not willing to rely solely on them. That was why he had contacted an old friend: Chiron Dunai the former Senator of Mamphra. The system had been separate from the Republic for a number of years but had not joined forces with the Separatists nor needed to. The Mamphrans were quite capable of defending themselves.

But that was not why he had contacted Chiron Dunai, the last thing they all wanted was to start another war. What they needed was a solution they could put all of their arguments behind, and Dunai had said he had found one.

Yet it was not the familiar face of his former colleague that disembarked the starship, but the slight form of a young woman wearing a deep violet dress with a veil of a similar hue that shrouded her hair.

"Senator Organa?" she asked. "I apologise for my father not being here, he has taken ill. I am Lefki Dunai and he has appointed me to represent him."

"No apologies needed," Bail said smoothly, escorting her inside. "All that I need to know is the fact you are here and you bring what he said he would."

"There is no question of that," she replied with a smile, and for a moment Bail was reminded of her father.

----------------------------

Later when Mon Mothma and Danta had arrived, Lefki outlined what her father had proposed.

"I know it is extreme," she said when she had finished. "But he told me several times that it was the best course of action to take."

"But making a petition—"Mon Mothma objected.

"Will do nothing," Lefki interjected. "By all means do as a cover, but don't expect it will get anywhere. Not with all the power the Chancellor has already."

"Are these your own thoughts or Chiron's?" Bail asked, intrigued.

"Both," Lefki replied, with a smile. "We tend to see things eye to eye."

"Once thesa is done, what wesa do next?" Danta asked.

Lefki displayed the rest of the documents. "The main thing is you have to do it in a way that the only questions that can be raised is that why didn't anyone push for this before," Lefki explained. "I know it's asking a lot, but unless you do that Palpatine's supporters are going to raise so much ire that excuses are going to be made for him."

"The question is," Bail considered, "how we are going to go about it?"

Mon Mothma stared at him. "I don't like this," she objected. "This is dirty, back-room politics. Surely we do not want to lower ourselves to Palpatine's standards?"

"What is the alternative?" Lefki asked. "I've considered this myself and all I can see is using undue force, which normally makes this a lot worse."

"That's right," Bail agreed with conviction. "And as for lowering ourselves, haven't we done that already? By even _suggesting_ the idea of not trusting Palpatine we've already dirtied our hands."

Mon Mothma considered this, but didn't reply.


	13. Chapter 13

Anakin found Palpatine outside his office examining at a large holographic display of the galaxy that was projected in the air in behind the rails of a balcony. Here and there were spots outlined in blue where Republic forces were engaged in combat and red worlds that were under Separatist control.

Below the hologram they could see the floor below and some of the workings of the Senate.

_Somehow,_ Anakin thought with a smile_, it brings everything into perspective_. Yet that thought gave him a sour feeling inside when he remembered what he was supposed to be doing.

"It appears that I have some good news for you after all this," Palpatine said, gently waving a hand at the holographic display. He handed Anakin a holocube.

Anakin activated it, the device projected the figure of Grievous followed by a tan-green coloured planet.

"You've found him!" Anakin said with a smile.

"Well, not me personally," Palpatine admitted. "It was Clone Intelligence, they discovered he was hiding in the Utapau system."

"At last," Anakin murmured triumphantly, he closed his fist over the holocube. "We'll be able to capture the monster and end this war."

"Personally, I would worry about the collective intelligence of the Council if they didn't select you for this assignment. You're their best choice by far," said the Chancellor with a smile. "But they can't always be trusted to do the right thing."

"They try," Anakin replied, defending the Council on Obi-Wan's behalf.

"Guards, leave us." Palpatine said, and the red guards who had been hovering in the background until then departed. Once they were alone, Palpatine smiled sadly at Anakin. "Anakin, you know I'm not able to rely on the Jedi Council," he confessed. "If they haven't included you in their plot, they soon will."

"What…what do you mean?" Anakin asked in surprise.

"You must sense what I have come to suspect," insisted Palpatine. "The Jedi Council want control of the Republic." He looked at Anakin. "They're planning to betray me."

Anakin wasn't convinced. Surely those on the Council might not _like_ the Chancellor, but wasn't this going a bit too far?

"I don't think—"

"Anakin, search your feelings. You know, don't you?"

Palpatine's gaze was penetrating, for a moment Anakin looked away.

"I know that they don't trust you," the young Jedi admitted reluctantly.

"Or the Senate," Palpatine continued, "or the Republic, or _democracy_ for that matter."

"I have to admit that my trust in them has been shaken," said Anakin. _Ever since they said I was on the Council in name-only_, he added in thought, _ever since they refused to make me a Master._

But this seemed new to Palpatine.

"Why?" He examined Anakin with interest. "Have they asked you to do something dishonest?"

Anakin didn't answer, he didn't trust himself to.

"They asked you to spy on me, didn't they?"

Anakin stared at him. "I…I don't know what to say," he stammered.

"Oh, I don't mind, Anakin," said Palpatine with a chuckle. "I have nothing to hide." He paused for

a moment, examining the hologram. "Do you remember when you were a small boy and I tried to teach you the ins and outs of politics?"

"Vaguely," replied Anakin. "From what I can recall I wasn't particularly interested in those lessons."

"For _any_ lessons, if I remember correctly," said Palpatine. "Never mind, I told you that to understand politics is to understand power itself. And all those who attain power are afraid to lose it." He caught Anakin's eye at this point. "Even the Jedi."

"But the Jedi use their power for _good_," insisted Anakin.

"Good is a point of view, Anakin," remarked Palpatine. "The Jedi concept of power is not the only one. The Sith on the other hand…" Anakin felt a shiver as Palpatine said the words "…they believed in justice and security but are considered by the Jedi to be…"

"Evil," finished Anakin, remembering his vision. Anything that was going to kill Padmé he considered evil.

But Palpatine waived this. "That's a Jedi's point of view." He looked at Anakin. "Isn't _evil_ a name we put on those who threaten us?"

"Um…yes," Anakin reluctantly agreed.

"The Sith and the Jedi are very similar in their quest for greater power," continued Palpatine. "Where they differ is that the Sith are not afraid of the dark side of the Force. That is why they are the more powerful."

"The Sith rely on their passion for strength," said Anakin. "They think inward, only about themselves." Yet he knew his words sounded hollow, he could have been repeating something that Obi-Wan or Master Windu said.

"And the Jedi don't?" queried the Chancellor.

"The Jedi are _selfless_," insisted Anakin. "We erase the self to join the flow of the Force. We care about others."

Palpatine smiled quietly. "Or so you have been taught to believe," he murmured. "Tell me, if the Jedi are so selfless, why is it that they have asked you to do something that is wrong?"

Anakin was silent again. "I'm…" He could feel his face get hot with the embarrassment. "I'm not sure it's wrong."

"Have you been asked to betray the Jedi Code?" Palpatine asked. "The Constitution? A friendship? Your own values?"

Anakin did not reply.

"Think, Anakin! I have always tried to teach you to think," the politician urged. "You need to consider their motives and keep your mind clear of any assumptions. The fear or losing power is a

weakness of both the Jedi and the Sith."

Just as Anakin was wondering where Palpatine could have possessed such knowledge of the Sith, the Chancellor surprised him again.

"This brings to mind a curious legend," Palpatine said meditatively. "Anakin, have you heard the Tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise?"

"Um…no, I don't think I have," admitted Anakin.

"Well, it's not surprising," said the Chancellor. "It's not a tale that the Jedi would choose to tell. It's a Sith legend." Palpatine paused for a moment. "It says that Darth Plagueis was such a powerful Sith Lord that he could actually influence the midi-chlorians that create life."

Here Palpatine paused again, gazing at Anakin expectantly. Anakin found himself listening intently.

"He could also save the ones he cared about from dying," added Palpatine.

"He could actually _save_ people from death?" Anakin asked.

"With such knowledge of life, stopping death was but a little thing to him," Palpatine replied slowly. "In my experience, the dark side of the Force is a path to many abilities some consider to be… unnatural."

"What happened to him?" Anakin demanded, he could get this much philosophy from Obi-Wan.

"Well," said Palpatine slowly. "He became so powerful that all he feared was losing it. He taught his apprentice everything he knew and the apprentice killed him in his sleep. Very ironic," remarked the Chancellor with a dry smile. "He could save others from death but he could not save himself."

"And the apprentice?" Anakin prompted

"Your interest in this Anakin, is quite surprising," Palpatine noted, fortunately he didn't question it and went on with the story. "His apprentice becomes one of the greatest Dark Lord the Sith had ever known."

"Is it possible," said Anakin, his heart racing at what he had just heard, "possible at all, to learn this power?"

"Well," admitted Palpatine with a shrug, "not from a Jedi."


	14. Chapter 14

It was late when Padmé entered Bail Organa's apartment, the Alderaanian senator was garbed in a light grey tunic and he invited Padmé to sit across from him.

"There's something I need to ask of you," she told him.

"Go ahead."

Padmé took a deep breath and then began. "I haven't told anyone of what you are planning," she explained to him. "But there's one other Jedi I wish to approach so I can give you more of an idea as to what might happen."

"And you trust him?" Bail asked.

"Implicitly," Padmé replied without hesitation.

Bail thought for a moment. "Fine, it can't hurt," he said. "Just don't tell Mon Mothma that I said this to you."

"I understand," Padmé nodded.

"She is still hesitant about you being included in this," he told her.

"Included?" Padmé asked. "I wouldn't go so far to say that."

"My worst fear is that if we fail that you will be implicated too, as well as other Jedi," Bail confessed.

"That all depends on what you decide to do," Padmé reminded him. "And there can be no question about it being just, can there?"

Bail didn't answer for a moment, he laid a document reader on the table before her. Padmé examined it and started in surprise.

"That's…."

"The Chancellor's seal? Yes it is." Bail quickly put it away.

"But this can…" Padmé shook her head. "I don't understand this."

"This is what it has come to," Bail told her. "We want to save the Republic, and this means doing things we consider…questionable."

"But falsifying documents?" Padmé stared at him. "And who is to say that even if you do act in this way Palpatine will able to manoeuvre politically so as to discredit you?"

Bail smiled. "You should have been a politician, Padmé," he observed.

"I'm no politician, I'm just following my instincts," she insisted. "But this…" She held up her hands in surrender. "It can explode all over you and destroy everything you've worked for."

"That is a risk I am prepared to take," Bail told her. "What would really suit our purposes is if we were able to trip Palpatine up by exposing something he actually _did_ do."

"That could never happen," Padmé said. "He may have been made a dictator but he's not stupid."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Bail remarked. "Dictators normally create their own enemies."

Yet Padmé was not sure if she could agree.

----------------------------

The next morning, Anakin presented Palpatine's findings to the Jedi Council.

"This is strange," noted Ki-Adi-Mundi's hologram. "We have no news from our agents in the Utapau system."

"How could the Chancellor have this information and we know nothing about it?" asked Mace. "We have had contact with Baron Papanoida and he said no one was there."

"A partial message was intercepted by Clone Intelligence in a diplomatic packet from the Chairman of Utapau," explained Anakin.

Mace gave him a black look. "Clone Intelligence reports to _us_."

"I beg your pardon, Master Windu, but that is no longer the case," Anakin replied, he met the Jedi Master's stare with an uncharacteristic calmness. "I thought it was understood that the constitutional amendment bringing the Jedi under the Chancellor's office naturally included the troops commanded by the Jedi. Palpatine is now Supreme Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic."

Obi-Wan and Mace exchanged a significant look, their worst fears had been confirmed.

"Act on this, we must," said Yoda decidedly. "The capture of General Grievous will end this war. Quickly and decisively we should proceed."

There was a ripple of agreement.

"The Chancellor has requested that I lead the campaign," said Anakin carefully.

But Mace would have none of this.

"The Council will make up its _own_ mind who is to go," he insisted. "Not the Chancellor."

"Yes," agreed Ki-Adi-Mundi, "the decision is ours to make."

Anakin looked hopefully at Obi-Wan, but his former Master was looking the other way.

"Given our resources I recommend we send one Jedi," said Renust Nju. "Master Kenobi."

"He was not so successful the last time he met Grievous," Anakin pointed out.

Now it was Obi-Wan's turn to give Anakin a dirty look. "Thanks for the vote of confidence," he said.

"No offence, Master, but I am only stating a fact," explained Anakin.

"Oh no, you're quite right," Obi-Wan agreed. "But I do have the most experience with his ways of combat. I know how he fights, and how he runs away, I am certain I can catch him."

"But Master—"

"And you Anakin, have duties here on Coruscant," Obi-Wan reminded him curtly. "_Extremely_ _important_ duties that require your _full_ attention." He raised an eyebrow. "Am I being clear?"

Anakin turned away sulkily. _All he has to do is tack on 'Padawan' to the end of that and nothing's changed_, he thought bitterly, _just when I thought he was done dressing me down he does it _again_ in front of the _entire_ Council_.

"Obi-Wan my choice is," Yoda murmured.

"I concur," said Ki-Adi-Mundi.

"It's settled then," stated Mace, he glanced around at the other Council members. "Six in favour," he counted, then looked at Anakin. "Further comments?"

Anakin ignored him, staring at the pattern on the floor.

Mace shrugged. "It's unanimous then." He turned to Obi-Wan. "Prepare two clone brigades as quickly as you can. If this report is true, there's no telling how many battle droids he may have with him."

----------------------------

As Obi-Wan left the Council chamber, Padmé approached him

"Can we talk for a moment?" she asked him.

"I'm on my way to do something important," he told her.

"This will only take a moment," she insisted.

"Okay." They walked quickly to one of the outside balconies. "Now?"

Before she said anything more, Padmé quickly checked to see if they were alone. Coming from the Council chamber she saw Anakin, he moved to go to them but she waved him on. When Anakin had gone, Padmé sighed.

"I'm still not sure if approaching you about this is the right thing, Obi-Wan," she said.

"About what?" The Jedi Master asked.

"I think there are some in the Senate that are going to…" She paused for a moment to consider her words. "…create trouble for Palpatine."

"Is this what you meant about choosing sides?" Obi-Wan asked her, drawing her further outside.

"Yes," she answered. "Senator Organa approached me and asked me what side the Jedi would stand on."

"What did you tell him?" This could prove crucial, though Obi-Wan knew Padmé well enough to know she would not say too much.

"I told him I wasn't sure," she explained. "While there are some Jedi that support Palpatine, there are others…"

"That feel he has overstepped his bounds," Obi-Wan finished. "I feel that way too, and so do most of the Council." He held up a hand quickly. "And I didn't tell you that, by the way."

"Of course," Padmé nodded.

"Do you know what they plan to do?" inquired Obi-Wan.

Padmé thought for a moment. "He said they needed to discredit him," she said at last. "I'm not sure how far they plan to go, but it seems that it needs to be done in a way that there is little doubt."

"Especially in the mind of Palpatine's supporters," added Obi-Wan. Suddenly he found himself wishing he _wasn't_ being sent after Grievous. After what Padmé had told him he knew he had to run this by Mace, especially in light of what they were planning.

"Are you going to tell anyone about this?" Padmé asked him.

"I may need to," Obi-Wan told her. "If they rebel it will be another conflict we'll have to face." He pointed out. "And we have had strong ties with the Loyalist Committee since Imbroglio; that will reflect very badly on the Jedi." _Especially_, he added in thought, _if we take the measures Mace is considering_. "Padmé, as much as I'd like to discuss this with you further I'm afraid I can't," he said at last. "I'm going to get rid of Grievous, and things may change after that. Palpatine may give up his dictatorial powers." He started to walk away.

"And if he doesn't?"

Padmé's voice stopped him. "Then we'll need to have this conversation again," he replied. "And include several others."

And with that he left her.


	15. Chapter 15

In Danta's senatorial apartment, a curious assortment of beings were being entertained. Seated were Chi Eekway, Giddean Danu and Bana Breemu. Facing them and also seated were Mon Mothma, Danta and Fang Zar. Bail Organa stood by the window, clad in a blue-grey tunic with a cape fastened to one shoulder, he faced away from the gathering with a sombre expression.

"I can tell you that many senators are becoming very nervous indeed about the new security amendments," said Chi Eekway. "The new governors have arrived with clone troopers for _security_ _reasons_, they say."

"And are these troops meant to protect us from the Separatists?" asked Bana Breemu. "Or are they intended to protect the governors from _us_."

"This war will be over once General Grievous is located," Senator Danu pointed out. "The Chancellor has said so himself."

"But what after then?" Bail asked, turning towards them and pacing across the room. "We cannot make Palpatine withdraw his governors, and it will not be long before he garrisons troops in _all_ our systems."

"But what are you suggesting?" Danu asked.

Bail didn't answer for a moment, he went to the table in the middle of the room and activated the document reader.

"I know this seems a little…extreme," he said tentatively. "But this may be the only way, the only way we can save the Republic."

When the contents were laid bare there was silence.

"We've managed to…acquire some transmissions from Republic Intelligence," Mon Mothma explained. "If the Chancellor is prolonging the war for his own purposes, we can expose him."

"How did you manage to acquire such information?" Fang Zar asked.

"I would prefer not to answer that," Mon Mothma replied quietly.

Silence again.

"Yet this is not all we have to do," Bail continued. "This is an extremely dangerous move, and we need to shift the Chancellor's focus to someone else."

"You mean having an actual opposition that we push into view?" Zar asked.

"Yes," Mon Mothma answered. "We cannot block the Chancellor's supermajority, but we can show him as well as others that opposition to his methods is growing."

"That way when this is presented it won't be such of a surprise," Danu remarked.

There was a murmur of agreement.

"Wesa also have consulted the Jedi," Danta added. "Theysa not happy with Palpatine either."

"Will they help us?" Eekway asked. "The moral authority of the Jedi will give us further weight."

"Yet their position is precarious," Bana noted. "Their moral authority has been largely spent on this war."

"The position of the Jedi is a quite tentative," agreed Mothma. "But I have firm reasons to believe that they will side with us once we move. After all, we are doing what is right."

----------------------------

"You're going to need me on this one, Obi-Wan," Anakin said, revealing all his nervousness in his voice.

Why had the Council been so stubborn and refused to let him go with Obi-Wan? Out there in the field he could forget all the political wrangling going on around him. Things were much simpler in the field of battle, where all he had to worry about was the next blaster bolt coming for him.

"Oh, it may be a wild bantha chase," admitted Obi-Wan with a chuckle. "But you have a very important job here, Anakin."

_Need you remind me? _ Anakin thought. "It's just that I don't like the idea of you going off without me," he said. "Look what happened _last_ time we split up."

"I know," said Obi-Wan, remembering. "But we have worked apart before, Anakin. Like when you and Padmé went with Senator Nalanda to Naboo and I went to Kamino and Geonosis."

"And look how _that_ turned out," Anakin reminded him.

"All right, bad example," Obi-Wan chuckled again. "But don't worry. I have enough clones with me to take three systems the size of Utapau. I think I'll be able to handle the situation, even _without_ your help."

"Well, there's always a first time," Anakin replied with a smile.

Obi-Wan turned to go and Anakin couldn't hold back any longer. "Obi-Wan, wait!"

The Jedi Master stopped, looking at Anakin expectantly.

Anakin took a deep breath, he might not get another chance to say this. "I know I've disappointed you," he said. "I have not been very appreciative of your training. I have been arrogant and I apologize." He scowled for a moment. "I've just been so _frustrated_ with the Council. Your friendship means everything to me."

If Anakin expected a scolding from Obi-Wan he was pleasantly surprised. The Jedi Master came forward and touched him gently on the shoulder.

"You are strong and wise, Anakin," he said admirably. "I have trained you since you were a small boy. I have taught you everything I know. You are a credit to the Jedi Order and you have become a far greater Jedi than I could ever hope to be."

"I thought you once told me that power is no credit to me," Anakin remarked dourly.

"I am not speaking of your power, Anakin," Obi-Wan told him. "The greatness in you is your greatness of spirit. Courage, generosity, compassion and commitment, these are your virtues. You have done great things and you have saved my life more times than I can remember. I am very proud of you."

There was a silence; Anakin found he had nothing to say.

"But you must be _patient_," Obi-Wan urged. "It won't be long before the Council makes you a Jedi Master."

From the ship below came the sound of engines starting up. It was time to go, Anakin realised.

"Well, I think I can hear General Grievous calling my name," Obi-Wan said with a laugh, he walked down the gantry.

Anakin called after him. "Obi-Wan, may the Force be with you."

Obi-Wan turned for a moment. "Goodbye old friend," he said, smiling at him, "and may the Force be with you."

_It better be_, Anakin added silently as he watched the ship prepare to leave. Before the war Anakin would have been glad to be left alone while Obi-Wan went off somewhere else. Now he wished with all he had that he was by his former Master's side.

It was not a comforting feeling.


	16. Chapter 16

In the Senate, sentients were gathered for the afternoon session. Such events were not what they used to be. Formerly the representatives of the Republic would engage in debate, vote on an issue and it would be passed. Now all that was gone thanks to Palpatine's emergency powers. The senators merely put forward proposals for his approval.

Such was the case with Senator Triev Stokra of the Corporate Sector. He moved his pod forward and was recognised by the chair.

"The Corporate Sector respectfully asks the Supreme Chancellor why Count Dooku has not been brought to trial yet," Stokra said. "He has been held in the Jedi Temple for a number of days, surely this is a matter for the courts and not the Jedi."

At this Danta moved his pod into the arena.

"Naboo wishes to remind thesa Senator from thesa Coprat Sect that theysa Jedi are holding Dooku as theysa can control him," Danta explained.

"The Chair does not recognise the Senator from Naboo," Palpatine said, meeting Danta's eye briefly.

For a moment there was silence in the Senate chamber. Then Danta returned his pod to the Naboo box.

"I have been advised that the questioning of Count Dooku is nearing a conclusion," Palpatine explained for the benefit of all. "Once this is done, as it will be shortly, he will be made to answer for his crimes." A cheer erupted from the chamber. "If one has caused as many deaths as he does and caused this war to go on longer than it should, then they shall be answerable for their crimes in full!"

The Senate exploded, politicians on their feet and chanting the Chancellor's name. Bail Organa rose with them, after all one had to keep up appearances. During this his aide whispered in his ear. With a few words, a figure in a brown cloak was admitted to the Alderaan box.

"I've spoken with Obi-Wan," Padmé told him.

"And?"

Padmé thought for a moment. "I think they will be willing to side with you," she whispered. "But it all depends."

"It would," Bail agreed. "Thank you."

Padmé retreated discreetly, exuberance still the order of the day in the Senate.

But despite all the noise and the distance he was from the Alderaan box, Palpatine noticed her leave. Yet he said nothing, continuing to be the centre of the erupting storm.

----------------------------

Reports of this were heard by the Jedi Council, and when the next interrogation session was over Mace Windu approached Renust Nju.

"The Senate is calling for him to be brought to trial," he told Nju.

"Impossible, how could such a thing be done?" Nju asked incredulously.

"We have done it for others," Mace reminded him, thinking of Kar Vastor whom he had brought back from Haruun Kal early in the war. "Holding him longer gives no one any favours."

"I'm going to be honest with you, Mace," Nju said, falling into step beside the dark-skinned Jedi Master. "I haven't learnt much from him that we already know. I put the evidence that we gathered against him and he refuses to acknowledge it, discounting it as circumstantial." He stared at Mace for a moment. "I'm surprised you asked _me_ to handle this, _you're_ the one who knows him."

"And that's why you are asking the questions," Mace answered. "We're running out of time, what happened this afternoon will only get worse if we continue to delay."

"I'll see what I can do," Nju promised.

----------------------------

In the late afternoon Anakin found himself in the Chancellor's office again. He had heard what had gone on in the Senate and he was pleased. The sooner Dooku was brought to trial, the better.

"So Anakin," Palpatine said once he had dismissed the red guards, "did you see your friend off?"

"Yes," Anakin replied, "if I didn't hate Grievous so much I'd almost feel sorry for him."

Palpatine looked surprised. "I thought Jedi were not allowed to hate."

"Figure of speech," Anakin shrugged. "It doesn't matter, Obi-Wan will soon have his head."

"Provided that he is the right Jedi for the job," Palpatine reminded him.

"The Council was…very sure of its decision," Anakin told him.

"_You_ don't seem very sure about that," Palpatine observed.

Anakin said nothing.

"It hurts me to see you in such pain, Anakin," Palpatine said, walking towards him. "I had no idea that you being put on the Council would cause this."

"They seem to resent you," Anakin replied bitterly. "I still don't know why."

"Have you already forgotten what I told you about power?" Palpatine asked him. "This is not only limited to the Jedi, there are those in the Senate who resent the measures that need to be taken."

"They don't understand," Anakin said loyally.

"They may not," Palpatine agreed, "but their voices are quite loud and numerous, even after the display this afternoon."

"I don't have much stomach for politics, your Excellency," Anakin murmured.

"I know, but I wouldn't mention this if I didn't think it didn't concern you directly," the Chancellor replied.

Anakin looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"It seems that a certain Jedi has been seen associating with these senators," Palpatine explained slowly.

"Obi-Wan?"

"No, I believe this was a _female_ Jedi Knight," Palpatine told him. "She has close associations with Senator Organa, as well as Danta Pela of Naboo and…a few others."

"Padmé?" Anakin could feel cold sweat start to gather. "But she…she would never…no." He walked away for a moment, staring at the floor his thoughts whirling.

"Sometimes the closest are those who cannot see," Palpatine said, and it was this remark that caused Anakin to look back.

_How could he know?_ Anakin thought frantically, _Master Yoda is one thing, but _Palpatine

"I may not be a Jedi, Anakin, but I do have eyes and ears," Palpatine said. "I have noticed that you have a certain…fondness shall we say, for Padmé Naberrie."

Anakin could not trust himself to answer.

"May I be right in guessing she does not return these affections?" he asked.

"She said…" Anakin brushed his hair away from his face. "She said a while ago that we can't let it continue. After all, there is a war on."

"I see." Yet Palpatine continued to look at him. "It seems very…unfortunate."

"It's the way things are for the Jedi," Anakin told him with a shrug. "It's not like we have a choice."

"You may think you don't Anakin," Palpatine said mildly. "But it doesn't have to be like this. There is a way you can have what you've always wanted, there is a way for you and Padmé to be together."

"What do you mean?" Anakin asked.

"I think," Palpatine replied slowly, "that you already know the answer to that."


	17. Chapter 17

When the _Vigilance_ cleared into real-space, Obi-Wan considered his options. Utapau was a Separatist-occupied world and it wouldn't be wise to bring in his forces. At least, not just yet.

"What's the plan, boss?"

Obi-Wan smiled, Commander Cody he had known for quite some time and he had no reluctance in leaving the second part of the operation to him. After all, that what was he was designed for, he was a clone of Jango Fett like all the others.

"We'll do a two-pronged attack," Obi-Wan explained, bringing up a holographic display of the area. "Fortunately for us, most of the cities are concentrated here—" he pointed "—on this continent on the far side. I'll go in first and locate Grievous."

Cody let out a low whistle, yet he knew what the Jedi was capable of.

"Send in two battalions, with the third in reserve to cover any escape routes," Obi-Wan finished, deactivating the hologram and heading for his starfighter.

"Anything else?" Cody asked.

"No, but I can only keep them distracted for a little while," Obi-Wan reminded him. "Don't take too long with the attack."

"Oh come on, boss," said Cody nonchalantly, "when have I ever let you down?"

"Well…" Obi-Wan stroked his beard, "there was Cato Neimoidia."

"That was Anakin's fault," the clone reminded him, "_he_ was the one who was late."

"Very well then," conceded Obi-Wan as he climbed into his starfighter, "the burden is on me not to destroy _all_ the droids before they get there."

"I'm counting on you, boss," Cody said, saluting him as the cockpit closed around Obi-Wan.

Soon enough, Obi-Wan was flying out of the hangar and heading for space. Yet as he did this he felt a momentary sadness. _If only Anakin was here_, he thought.

"Engage the hyperdrive, Arfour," he told the astromech on his wing.

Arfour chortled affirmatively and the starfighter disappeared.

----------------------------

Padmé found Anakin in the Temple gardens, he was sitting idly beside one of the pools and examining some of the flowers. He looked up as she approached and plucked a small white one off the shrub.

"This one's always reminded me of you," he said, cupping the blossom in his hand. "I still don't know why, but somehow it does." He smiled and offered it to her.

"Anakin," she warned. "We've talked about this, I've made my choice and I'm not going back."

"Yes, I know," he sighed, discarding the flower. "But I still can't help thinking that it shouldn't have to be this way. There's something…" He closed his eyes for a moment. "…there's something that holds me back, I've never given up my feelings."

Padmé didn't answer him, some things were better off not being said. The feelings might still be there, but Padmé knew there was a certain line Anakin would not cross because she had asked him not to. She knew that what stopped him from doing this was the hope that she might let her guards down again, something she had vowed to never do.

"Why were you in the Senate this afternoon?" he asked her suddenly.

She stared at him. "How could you know that?"

"It doesn't matter _how_ I know," Anakin said loftily, "the fact is that you _were_ seen there."

Padmé sighed, she should have realised this. "Palpatine told you, didn't he?"

Anakin didn't answer but his face betrayed him.

"All right, I was there," Padmé admitted reluctantly. "Does it matter?"

"It does if you were seen talking to senators of questionable reputation," Anakin told her.

Padmé stood over him. "Who are you to say that?" she demanded. "I don't _believe_ this! You've got no views of your own as Palpatine's given them to you."

"So what if he has?" asked Anakin indignantly. "I still don't understand why none of the Jedi can see him as I do."

"That's because your friendship benefits him," Padmé retorted.

"How can it?" Anakin asked. "He's _never_ asked me to do anything!"

"Except be his representative on the Council," she pointed out.

"That wasn't just for him!" Anakin flashed. "He told me that was for the benefit of the Jedi as well."

Padmé examined Anakin for a long moment, was there any way she could get through to him so he could see what Palpatine as he _really _was? Well, not yet, if the Loyalists had their way then the truth would not just be apparent to Anakin but to everyone.

Yet Padmé was not one to so easily give up. She shook her head, holding back the hot words she had meant to say to him. How could she approach this.

But before she could say anything, Anakin spoke again.

"I have found a way to save you," he said.

She stared at him again. "_Save_ me?"

"From my nightmares," Anakin reminded her.

"Oh." Padmé had almost forgotten about Anakin's vision. "Is _that_ what's bothering you?"

_Of course it's bothering me_, Anakin thought fiercely, he still could not face the thought of losing her. "I've learnt about something," he told her quickly, not wanting her to break in and ask questions he didn't want to answer. "I have found a way so I can keep you safe."

"How?" Padmé asked, she didn't like the sounds of this.

"I don't really know," he confessed. He had initially meant to tell her the whole story, but with what she had said about Palpatine he knew that would only lead into another argument. "But I _won't_ lose you, I _can't_."

"I've already encountered a Sith two—no three times and survived," Padmé reminded him. "I'm more than capable of taking care of myself."

"No." Anakin took her hand with a grip that surprised her. "That's not good enough for me.


	18. Chapter 18

From the cockpit of his starfighter Obi-Wan could see the several depressions on Utapau's surface where the planet's cities were contained. The Jedi Master brought his fighter down into one of them, coming rest on a landing platform. Yet before he had opened the cockpit, a tall grey-skinned humanoid figure in red was approaching him.

"Greetings Master Jedi, I am Tion Medon, administrator of Pau City," he said coolly. "What business could you have in our remote sanctuary?"

"This war, unfortunately," Obi-Wan told him, inclining his head slightly.

"There is no war here unless you have brought it with you," Medon retorted.

Yet Obi-Wan sensed there was more in what he was saying. For now, he decided to play along.

"Very well then," he said decidedly. "I would like some fuel and to use your city as a base to search the surrounding systems."

Medon gave the nod for several short beings to refuel Obi-Wan's ship, but he did not leave.

"Grievous is here!" the administrator hissed in Obi-Wan's ear. "We are all hostages, we are being watched!"

Obi-Wan nodded as if this were a matter of course. "Thank you for your hospitality, administrator," he replied with a nod. "I will be departing shortly to commence my search."

"You must depart in truth!" Medon whispered frantically. "I have been ordered to reveal this to you. The tenth level is filled with battledroids, _thousands_ of them!"

Obi-Wan nodded again, looking out of the corner of his eye behind them. He could see the tell-tale metal glint of battledroids. "Thank you for the fuel," he said in a loud voice, noticing that the fighter was finished refilling. "The attack will commence shortly," he added in a lower tone. "If you have warriors, now is the time."

Obi-Wan and Medon bowed to each other and the administrator retreated. The Jedi bent low over his starfighter for a moment.

"Arfour, get back to the ship," he told he astromech, "and tell Cody I've made contact."

Arfour whistled and closed the cockpit of his starfighter. From the shadows Obi-Wan watched his ship fly away, those who had been watching him would no doubt think he had left. Yet he could not shake the thought of what would happen next. "I have a bad feeling about this," he muttered.

----------------------------

Somewhere else in the city Obi-Wan spoke to a dealer for a mount. He hated having to mind-trick his way out of not paying, but he hoped saving the planet for them might suffice.

"Boga," he said, stroking the feathered mane of his mount as he sat astride it. In a curious way he was reminded of the goff birds he and Qui-Gon had rode on the backs of to enter Theed during the Naboo crisis. How he had hated it then, his response had been…well like Anakin's. He could almost hear Anakin complaining about the fact they had to ride one of those feathered-lizards that he now sat astride on and not for the first time wished his former apprentice was here.

But it did no good to dwell on that now. After all, he had a battle to win. He snapped the reins and they were off, scrambling down the walls of the city to where Obi-Wan had spotted the droids. Yet when they were there Obi-Wan went slightly higher, leaving the rock wall and walking along a platform above where many, many battledroids were gathered.

"Thank you, Boga," he said to his mount. "You've been a great help, you're free to go now."

But she refused to live, prodding him with his nose and whining softly.

"Really, I don't need your help," he told her.

Boga snorted softly and turned her back on him, strutting away and swishing her tail from side to side.

Obi-Wan walked to the edge of the platform, directly below he could see Grievous talking to Tion Medon.

"What did he want?" the droid general demanded.

"He only wanted fuel and then he left," Medon replied.

"What is his name?" Grievous asked.

"He didn't say," Medon told him.

Grievous pushed the administrator out of the way. "Find him!" he growled to his guards. "He couldn't have left! Bring him here, alive or dead!"

Obi-Wan waited until Tion Medon was gone and then he fell to the level below, merely metres from Grievous.

"Hello there," he said in such a polite tone that he knew would infuriate him.

Grievous turned around quickly, yet he took this surprise with due course.

"General Kenobi, you surely are a bold one," declared Grievous. "You do realise that you're doomed?"

"I am willing to accept your surrender," Obi-Wan told him calmly.

"Does this 'surrender' line of yours ever work, Kenobi?" Grievous asked.

"Sometimes," Obi-Wan admitted. "Or if we like, I can dismantle you part-by-part and ship you back to Coruscant."

"Or," challenged Grievous deviously, "there is the option where I watch you die."

"Didn't you listen?" Obi-Wan asked him. "That wasn't an option."

"I thought not." Grievous nodded to his droids. "Kill him!"

If there was ever that defined Obi-Wan, that revealed him as the Jedi he truly meant to be, it was then. He didn't need to feel for the Force, he _knew_ it was there. It came of its own accord, unbidden, and totally able to assist him with what was at hand.

That was why it was barely a movement for Obi-Wan to bring his lightsaber around and deflect all the blaster bolts launched at him with one blow, and that's why it was hardly anything more for him to make a gesture so these battledroids fell and hit the ones behind them. Then continued falling, and falling in a ring around Obi-Wan until all that was standing was himself, Grievous and the magna guards.

"General, my offer is still open," Obi-Wan said calmly.

"Do you still believe I will surrender to _you_?" Grievous snarled.

"Well I _could_ take you alive," Obi-Wan pointed out.

"I have _thousands_ of troops," Grievous retorted. "You can't possibly deal with _all_ of them yourself."

"I don't have to," Obi-Wan replied calmly.

"What?"

"You really should pay more attention to the weather," remarked Obi-Wan _very_ casually. "It's about to start raining clones."

Grievous turned as a large shadow moved over the city, it was the _Vigilance_. Gunships began to descend from the belly, engaging fire with Separatist craft before coming to land around the city. Everywhere the familiar white-on-black uniforms could be seen.

The droids were dispersing, engaging fire with the oncoming clones and falling to the ground.

Grievous turned back to Obi-Wan. "Enough! I will deal with this Jedi scum myself."

He removed his cape and threw it to the ground but not before retrieving four lightsabers from the pockets. Then he divided his arms and ignited all the weapons and brought them to an attack-ready position. He meant to look dangerous and intimidating, yet to Obi-Wan he looked like a crazed stick-insect.

But Obi-Wan knew better than to say this. Grievous incensed was one thing; Grievous completely mad with fury was something he didn't want to content with.

He brought his lightsaber up in an attack position. "Your move," he told the General.

Grievous whirled his two upper lightsabers like a shield, moving quickly to attack Obi-Wan with his weapons below. It was a four-pronged attack from the one combatant, furious in the way it had little form or art.

Yet Obi-Wan deflected this blow with one motion, entangling the blue and green lightsaber blades around his own blue blade.

"You know you cannot escape, Jedi," Grievous growled. "I was trained in your arts by Lord Tyrannus himself."

"Do you mean Count Dooku?" asked Obi-Wan casually. "That's a curious coincidence, I trained the man who bested him."

Grievous lunged again and Obi-Wan responded while all the while the battle raged around them.


	19. Chapter 19

In the war room of the Jedi Temple, Mace Windu and Yoda received Cody's report.

"We are beginning the attack as ordered," Cody's hologram told him. "From my experience with General Kenobi, I have a suspicion that Grievous does not have long to live."

"Thank you Commander," the Jedi Master said. "Keep us apprised of your progress." He turned to Anakin who was standing beside him. "Take this news to the Chancellor," he told him. "And pay specific attention to what he says and what his expression is when you tell him."

"But Master Windu," Anakin protested, "I don't understand."

"You don't have to understand," Mace barked, "just go and do it!"

Anakin bowed his head respectfully. "Yes Master."

When Anakin had gone Mace turned back to the other hologram that had come since then, Ki-Adi-Mundi on Mygeeto.

"Now we shall see," Mace murmured, resting his hands on the edge of the tactical table. "Now the waters will begin to clear."

Yoda murmured to himself, but did not agree.

Ki-Adi-Mundi's voice cut in on his thoughts. "You do realise that if the Chancellor refuses to surrender power, removing him is only the _first_ step?"

"I am not a politician," Mace said in a tight voice. "Removing a tyrant is enough for me."

"But that will not be enough for the Senate, or the Republic," the Cerean pointed out. "His dictatorship has been _legalised_, it can be _legitimised_ and the Senate will deny him nothing."

Mace had to admit that he was right.

"Corrupt the Senate has become," Yoda reminded them. "Take further action we must, controlled they must be until replacements can be found—"

"Do you _hear_ what you are _saying_?" Mace burst out, slamming his fist against the table in frustration. "I'm starting to think that Dooku was right, that in order to _save_ the Republic we must first _destroy_ it!"

Yoda shook his head. "Hold onto hope, we must," he urged. "Once destroyed Sidious is, less dire these other concerns will be."

"Yes, yes that is true," Mace reluctantly agreed, his anger subsiding. "We have put the Chosen One in play against the last of the Sith, in that we must place our faith in the future of the Republic."

Yet Mace would only wish that he could put as much trust in Skywalker as he said he was.

----------------------------

Somewhere else in the Temple, R2-D2 and C-3PO were at work at the computer banks. They were involved in processing information gathered from the wreck of the _Invisible Hand_. Suddenly, Artoo chattered excitedly at the protocol droid.

"What is it that you think you've found?" muttered Threepio.

Artoo told him.

"Really Artoo, what basis have you to judge such information to be correct?" Threepio asked doubtfully. "Chancellor Palpatine is above reproach and making accusations such as this will only get you into more trouble."

Yet Artoo would not let up, he played a short holographic transmission. Its contents were quite revealing, and not to mention surprising.

"Do the voices confirm on analysis?" Threepio inquired, rather nervously.

Artoo beeped affirmatively.

"Quick, there is no time to waste!" urged the protocol droid, they left the room as fast as they could. "We need to find Master Anakin."

----------------------------

Fighting Grievous was rather simple, Obi-Wan realised, though it meant a lot of work. He was unlike every opponent Obi-Wan had encountered. Darth Maxah had had art, strength and speed yet Obi-Wan had managed to overwhelm her, Jango Fett had none of these but attacked with brute force and skill. Dooku was different again, there was a certain culture and passion about the way he fought that was formidable in its own right.

Yet Grievous was none of these things. He had no art, or strength and neither force or skill, Grievous merely attacked. Sure, he had speed, but that was the only due to his make-up and nothing to do with any sort of ability.

So Obi-Wan sought to immobilise him step by step.

Firstly he severed one of Grievous's hands, letting the lightsaber fall to the floor. This infuriated Grievous further and he intensified his attack, yet this was all to Obi-Wan's advantage.

Then he sliced another of Grievous's hands in half, severing the lightsaber and letting both clatter beneath their feet. This time Grievous paused and examined both the maimed hand and lightsaber. He looked up at Obi-Wan. Then he fled, ordering one of his guards to kill the Jedi as he ran.

It didn't take Obi-Wan long to cut down the droid, but once this was done the droid General was nowhere to be seen.

"Grievous?" He looked frantically around at his troops who were engaging fire with Grievous's droid army. "Where is he? Which way did he go?"

One of the clones gestured to a curious wheel-shaped vehicle descending the walls of the sinkhole.

Grievous was _very_ good at running away.

"Not this time," Obi-Wan murmured, he cut a path through the droids to the edge of the platform, scanning below frantically for Grievous. Suddenly he heard a low honk above him, he looked up. "Boga?"

His mount looked accusingly at him, purring lowly.

"Oh, very well," he conceded, "you were right and I was wrong." He mounted her quickly. "Can we please go now? We have a general to catch."

Boga gave another honk and broke into a run straight down the wall of the sinkhole.


	20. Chapter 20

_Master Windu is going to be disappointed_, Anakin thought with satisfaction. Palpatine had barely reacted at all when he told him the news. He merely invited Anakin to sit down on one of the low red couches in one of the antechambers of his office.

Behind them, Anakin could see a curious relief displayed on the walls. He thought he could see Jedi, or figures holding lightsabers, battling some kind of huge tube-like creatures. Yet it was one side of this relief that caused his to shudder, bodies were piled up with no more ceremony than if they were firewood.

"Does that"—Anakin nodded to the relief—"have any thing to do with what you told me? That story of Darth Plagueis?"

"Not really," Palpatine replied amiably, he turned to look at the relief himself. "This is a much more complicated story, battles and adventures, more your kind of story I would imagine."

Anakin smiled in agreement.

"You seem to be particularly interested in Darth Plagueis," commented Palpatine. "May I ask why?"

"I'm…not sure," Anakin admitted shamefacedly. "It _is_ interesting, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is," agreed Palpatine. "Would it interest you further if I told you that the story was not a legend?"

"Sorry?" He wasn't sure if he was following here.

"The Tragedy of Darth Plagues is, in fact, _true_," Palpatine told him.

"But…how can you know this?" Anakin demanded.

"Plagueis was my Master," Palpatine said slowly. "He taught me in the ways of the dark side, and in the ways of the Sith."

"Why…you…" Before he knew it Anakin he was on his feet, had his lightsaber out and the blue blade pointed at Palpatine. "It's been _you_ all along, hasn't it?" He demanded, his anger rising quickly. "You're a Sith Lord!"

"Yes," replied Palpatine with a quiet smile, sitting calmly with his hands in his lap. "And what are you going to do about it?"

"I will…I should…I'm _going_ to kill you." Anakin brought the blade closer, but he found he could only bring it so far.

"You _say_ you do, yet something holds you back," Palpatine said evenly. "I _know_ you want to kill me, I can _feel_ your anger." He closed his eyes for a moment, revelling in the young man's torment. "But there is something else, isn't there?" Some_one_ else?"

"Padmé." Anakin spoke before he realised he had.

"You have seen her death," Palpatine continued, still smiling, "and you seek to prevent it because above all else, you cannot lose Padmé. I _know_ this, Anakin."

"How _dare_ you say that!" Anakin growled. "How dare you even _mention_ her name!"

"Yet am I supposed to be the Sith that kills her?" Palpatine asked. "Does she _have_ to die?"

"But…my vision…" Anakin protested.

"Your vision _may_ show the future, Anakin," Palpatine mildly pointed out. "Or…you could choose to change it."

The blade lowered slightly in Anakin's hands. "Change what?"

"Become my apprentice," said Palpatine. "Learn the ways of the dark side and you and Padmé need never be parted."

There was something in this that made Anakin stop, something that made him consider them further. Palpatine's words came back to him... _Anakin…it doesn't have to be like this…there is a way you can have what you've always wanted…there is a way for you and Padmé to be together…_

"I…" Anakin's voice died in his throat. As a Jedi he knew he _had_ to kill Palpatine, but after what he had said, what he had promised, could he?

"I'm going to turn you over to the Jedi Council," Anakin decided, deactivating his lightsaber and replacing it on his belt.

"A most wise course of action," approved Palpatine with a nod. "Yet need I remind you," he added darkly, "if I die, my offer dies with me."

It was with a heavy heart and whirling mind he left Palpatine's office, racing through the corridors as if all nine Corellian hells were unleashed after him.

----------------------------

It did not take Obi-Wan long to catch up to Grievous. The droid general was quickly advancing towards a landing platform where a small starfighter was parked. Obi-Wan urged Boga faster, Grievous _could not_ escape.

Grievous clambered off his bike and prepared to receive Obi-Wan, yet the Jedi was ready. He urged Boga to head down then jumped off her back, somersaulting through the air to come to rest beside Grievous.

Yet Grievous did not have time to stop and chat like last time, he seemed intent on leaving then and there. Obi-Wan came between him and the starfighter, fending off the droid general's attacks again and again.

"There!" Grievous gestured to two of his guards. "Finish him! I have other business!"

"Oh no, you don't!" Obi-Wan said, but first he had the two magna guards to contend with.

The first he managed to dispatch quickly, a quick slash at the belly and the thing was in pieces. The

second took a little longer, it whirled his electro-staff at him in a way that was creepily familiar to Obi-Wan. Yet he noticed that for no more than a moment, cutting the guard in two and looking about for Grievous.

He was above, racing along the face of the wall of the sinkhole on that crazy wheeled vehicle of his.

Obi-Wan gave a shrill whistle. "Boga!" His mount instantly responded, in another moment he was astride her and off after Grievous.

----------------------------

From the circular cockpit of his bike, Grievous turned around to see where Kenobi was. With a start he saw the Jedi was behind him and gaining quickly.

Cursing the Jedi, he increased speed further and entered a tunnel. There was no way that the organic mount could catch him.

Boga was not as fast as Grievous, yet she was able to make quite tenacious leaps at astonishing angles and seemed to know the layout of the tunnels instinctively. So it was not very difficult for Obi-Wan to come up right next to Grievous and grab his vehicle with one hand with his lightsaber lit in the other.

Grievous fought him off, batting his away with a free hand and the Jedi would have fallen if Boga had not swerved in time.

"Thanks," he murmured, continuing after Grievous as they left the tunnels and were out in the open again.

Around them the battle was starting to finish, and to his delight Obi-Wan noticed his troops were winning. He would not be on Utapau much longer, he realised. All that remained was Grievous's death.

Once again he managed to get next to Grievous just as they were racing up the side of the sinkhole. He grabbed the vehicle and this time he dodged Grievous's punch and continued to hold on. Grievous then grabbed an electro-staff as he passed and lunged it towards the Jedi.

And Obi-Wan realised he needed both hands, so he did the only thing he could do. He dropped his lightsaber. _Perhaps it's a good thing Anakin is not here_, he reflected, _Anakin would never let me hear the end of it._

He grabbed the electro-staff and hit Grievous over the head with it, then used the moment of distraction to leap from Boga and on to the side of the vehicle just as they were coming back to the landing platform.

Yet this overbalanced it and the vehicle tumbled over the side of the sinkhole. Grievous and Obi-Wan fell the other way, coming to land on the platform behind them.

Grievous crawled away like a demented crab and brought himself up to his full height, he drew out a small blaster pistol and fired quickly.

Yet Obi-Wan was ready, he was on his feet and using the electro-staff to fend off the blaster bolts, closing quickly on Grievous. Then with his free hand, he called into the Force and simply… _reached_.

One of the blaster pistols flew from Grievous's hand and landed in Obi-Wan's. The droid general stared at the Jedi and stared at his open hand.

He then looked up and saw his own death in Obi-Wan's eyes.

Yet Grievous was not done yet. He dodged Obi-Wan's attack with the electro-staff and grabbed the middle bar of the weapon to throw the Jedi back. Yet Obi-Wan held his ground, using the close contact he had with Grievous to pull apart pieces of his stomach armour.

Grievous pushed Obi-Wan back again, and this time the shove was so violent that Obi-Wan dropped the staff, blaster and would have fallen over the edge if he had not grabbed on at the last moment. The staff fell down into the sinkhole, yet the pistol…

"This is the _end_ for you, Kenobi," Grievous declared, picking up the second electro-staff where the remains of the second magna guard lay from before. "Not even your Jedi powers can save you now!"

And suddenly he remembered where the blaster was! He could feel it in the Force, so it was nothing to call it to his hand just as Grievous walked up to him.

Before Grievous realised what was going on, Obi-Wan pulled the trigger. The bolt ripped into the bag containing the remains of the general's body parts, burning what was there and causing fire to shoot from his eyes. Obi-Wan fired again and Grievous dropped the staff, he writhed on the spot in pain for a few moments before collapsing to the ground.

With a sigh and a smile Obi-Wan climbed back up onto the landing platform and lay there for a few moments. Then he got to his feet and threw the blaster pistol aside.

"So…_uncivilised_," he said, putting as much condemnation in his words as he could.

When he heard a soft honk behind him, Obi-Wan smiled again.

"Come on Boga," he said, mounting her. "I think we just might be done here."


	21. Chapter 21

When he came to the Jedi Temple, Anakin was met by the last thing in the universe he wanted to see: C-3PO.

"Master Anakin! Master Anakin!" Threepio trilled. "I have something very important to tell—"

Anakin shoved the droid so hard out of his way that Threepio almost fell over.

"Well, how _rude_!" Threepio said. "Still, it is very important that I talk to him."

The droid followed the running Jedi.

----------------------------

Padmé felt Anakin near her like an approaching storm, it did not take her long to find him but when she did Artoo and Threepio barred her way.

"Threepio, _please_!" she said, trying to get past him. "I need to talk to Anakin!"

"So do we, Miss Padmé," Threepio told her. "Artoo found something from the transmissions we got from the _Invisible Hand_ that is quite surprising."

"Can't this wait?" Padmé asked impatiently.

"It's about Chancellor Palpatine," Threepio said.

Padmé stopped and for the first time looked at him seriously. "_What_ did you say?"

"We found a transmission between him and General Grievous," Threepio told her.

"But that's…that's _impossible_," Padmé stammered.

"I thought so as well," Threepio agreed. "But Artoo _insists_ that he has verified the data at least three times and the voiceprints match exactly."

"Play it," Padmé said.

Artoo complied readily, projecting a small hologram onto the floor. It showed a humanoid figure in a hooded robe with the cowl pulled low to hide all but the mouth and nose.

"You must proceed with the attack now, General," said the hologram. "Make as much destruction as you want, but the Supreme Chancellor must be taken alive. Count Dooku will then arrive with further orders."

The hologram ended and Padmé was slowly coming to terms with what she had heard. She _knew_ that voice, she had heard it before and not just because it was Chancellor Palpatine. Padmé cast her mind back to the conference room on Imbroglio…Renust Nju talking to someone called…Sidious!

Did this mean that he had orchestrated the entire war from the very beginning? Did this mean…?

_No_, she put such questions firmly out of her mind, there was a time to consider this but now she had to decide what she had to do with the information she had.

Then she had an idea.

"Threepio, could you send this very quickly to Danta Pela or Senator Organa?" she asked.

"I'm not sure if—" But Artoo beeping excitedly caused him to stop. "Artoo says he can if we can get him to a computer outlet."

"There's one near by," Padmé said, but she left them without another word. She had to find Anakin.

----------------------------

Sidious knew that it would only be a matter of time before Anakin told someone about him. It would not be long before he would see a Jedi Master, or four, in his office demanding his arrest. Yet fortunately he had calculated for this.

He placed a call to a certain Jedi Master.

After that, he sent a communication to Mustafar with a single order: deactivate all droids.

The next part of the operation, the part that would see the death of all Jedi, would wait until he had the Chosen One firmly in his grasp.

----------------------------

Anakin was in one of the meditation rooms, sitting on a low stool and staring at the wall. He looked up vaguely when she entered. Those same raw eyes she had seen after he had had the vision peered back at her. _Where has he been?_ Padmé thought, _does he know already?_

"Anakin?" Padmé knew she had to proceed very carefully here. "Is there something wrong?"

"I…" Anakin put his head in his hands, when he looked up Padmé noticed the hot tears that streaked his face. "I was just with the Chancellor." He closed his eyes for a moment. "And he just revealed to me a terrible truth."

"That's he's a Sith Lord?" Padmé asked.

Anakin gaped. "How did you know?"

"It doesn't matter," Padmé said quickly. "We need to tell Master Windu."

"NO!" Anakin was on his feet and grabbed her arm firmly.

"Anakin! _Let go_ of me!" She struggled with his grip, when had she seen him like this? With a shudder she remembered, back on the _Invisible Hand_ when he told her they had to kill Dooku.

"I can't let you," he told her. "If you tell him, they will kill him!"

"But he's a Sith Lord!" Padmé exploded. "He's been leading you on all this time, pretending to be your friend and planning…"

"To make me his apprentice," Anakin replied.

Now it was Padmé's turn to stare. "He…did _what_?"

"He said that if I joined him we could be together," Anakin said. "Think about that, we wouldn't have the Jedi, or the Order or anything. We could just be ourselves."

"And at what price?" Padmé finally managed to shake off his grip. "Anakin, I don't know what you're planning to do, but I'm going to tell Master Windu."

"No!" Anakin tried to stop her, but she was already gone.

----------------------------

When Obi-Wan made his way back to the battle, Cody was waiting for him. With a smile he handed the Jedi his lightsaber.

"Thought you might want this back, boss," the clone said.

"Thanks," Obi-Wan replied, clipping it to his belt. "No word of this to Anakin, right?"

"I won't if you won't," Cody grinned. "Did you get finally Grievous to surrender?"

"No, his body is probably still smoking where I left him," Obi-Wan told him. "Why do you ask?"

"Didn't you notice, boss?" Cody gestured around him, for the first time Obi-Wan noticed the piles of droids around them. He had assumed that was the remnants of the battle, but at closer inspection he saw that some of them had not even been touched by blasterfire. Some of them were just…lying there.

"You managed to find the control station to deactivate the droids?" he asked Cody.

"Nope," the grinning Cody replied. "They just fell down by 'emselves."

"But…this means…" Obi-Wan's pleased but sceptical smile grew broader. The war was over! At long last and after seven almost endless years it had ended, finally! He wished Anakin was here to share this moment with him.

"Do we have much cleaning up to do around here?" he asked.

"Not much," Cody told. "Tion Medon has things well in hand."

"Well, maybe we can go home sooner than I thought," Obi-Wan said.


	22. Chapter 22

In his cell in the depths of the Jedi Temple, Dooku sat on a low bench. What little light there was came from the ceiling and this was protected by a thick layer of transparasteel.

The former Jedi looked up as the door opened, as was expected he pressed his back against the wall and waited to be escorted for interrogation. Yet Renust Nju was there, and was alone. He held out Dooku's lightsaber.

"It's time?" Dooku asked.

"Yes," Nju replied. "Wait a few minutes and I'll deactivate the Force-shield."

Nju closed the door and Dooku smiled to himself. At last the Sith would emerge to take their rightful place in the galaxy. He and Nju would destroy the Jedi here while Sidious himself drew Skywalker over to their side.

He could just taste their victory.

----------------------------

Padmé found Mace Windu not in the war room as she had first suspected, but in one of the hangars with several other Jedi.

She stopped quickly, Nju was not among them so there would be no one to stop her.

"Master Windu, I need to talk to you," she said.

"What is it?" he asked impatiently. "We're in a hurry. Obi-Wan has just defeated Grievous, we're on our way to make sure Palpatine returns powers to the Senate."

"He won't," Padmé told him, she heard Anakin stop behind her.

"What makes you so sure?" Windu asked sceptically.

But before she could explain further an alarm sounded somewhere in the Temple. Renust Nju ran in breathlessly.

"Dooku has escaped!" Nju said in astonishment

Mace looked from Nju, to Padmé to Anakin who was just standing there saying nothing.

"How could this have happened?" Mace asked Nju, he then dismissed his own question. "We need to find him." He started to leave the room with Nju and the others.

Padmé saw her chance slipping. "But wait! Master Windu!"

The Jedi Master didn't even look back.

Grinding her teeth in frustration, Padmé ran towards the door as Kuan Yin was leaving. Anakin moved forward to stop her.

"Padmé, don't!"

"Anakin, _let go_ of me!" For the second time that day she struggled out of his grip, tighter than the first one had been. She ran forward to grab Kuan Yin by the arm.

"Padmé, what is it?" she asked. "I have to get going with—"

"I haven't told you what I found out," Padmé said quickly. "Palpatine is a Sith Lord."

"What?" Kuan Yin stared at her. "Are you _sure_?"

"Without a doubt," Padmé said, "but there's more, Master Nju is his other apprentice Darth Typhon."

There, she had said it, the secret she had carried for seven years because if she told it to anyone she would not be believed.

It was at this auspicious moment that every light in the Temple went out. The room was flooded with the light of the late afternoon casting eerie red glows on their faces.

"How long have you known?" Kuan Yin asked in a small voice.

"He gave me this!" Padmé told them, pulling back part of her right glove to reveal her artificial hand. "I saw him on Imbroglio talking to Sidious," Padmé continued, "I didn't believe it at first, but when he confirmed it himself. He let me live because he knew I couldn't tell anyone."

"But you could have told me!" Anakin said angrily. "_I_ would have believed you!"

"Would you?" Kuan Yin asked him, but she turned back to Padmé and started for the door. "There may be still time to tell Mace, but at least we know now how Dooku escaped."

----------------------------

In the Temple, Masters quickly tried to get younglings together, fortunately being Force-trained their minds were calm and this was not a difficult job. But it was difficult for R2-D2 to find a still-functioning computer outlet, three others they had found had been tampered with, the socket was melted away.

"Here's one!" Threepio said, waving an arm frantically. "Please do this quickly, Artoo so we can hide somewhere. I really don't like what's going on here."

Artoo inserted his arm into the socket just as several screams were heard at one end of the corridor followed by the running of little feet.

"Hurry up, Artoo!" Threepio urged, banging on the astromech's dome.

Artoo tittered that he was doing the best he could when the screams grew louder. Younglings were running past them, looking back at…Threepio turned around and almost fell over with surprise.

It was Count Dooku, several Jedi were engaged in combat with him and he was winning within a matter of seconds. It did not take long for Dooku to sink his lightsaber into one foe before he was onto the next.

"We're doomed!" he moaned.

But Artoo didn't think so, he pushed against Threepio's legs and led the frightened protocol droid into a side room.

Threepio felt relieved but the screams continued to echo through the Temple.

"Shouldn't we do something?" Threepio asked his counterpart.

----------------------------

"Here, younglings!" Yoda called, guiding his hovering chair through the corridor with a crowd of children around him. "Follow me, know safe place to hide I do."

Padmé and Anakin passed him as they followed Kuan Yin out of the Temple. Several exits they tried had already been barred, and Mace Windu was nowhere to be found.

_Surely he can't be dead_, Padmé thought frantically.

Yet suddenly finding Mace Windu alive seemed to be the least of their worries. In their path was Renust Nju. Padmé took this as her first opportunity in seven years to vent her feelings against him.

"You!" She walked towards him, not caring in the least what happened. "This is _your_ doing, isn't it?" He didn't reply, he merely watched her dispassionately. "Have you looked around?" Padmé demanded. "Have you seen the bodies everywhere?"

"Padmé." Kuan Yin gently moved her former apprentice behind her, she nodded to Nju. "We'll just be on our way."

"No," Nju said. He took out his lightsabers and ignited them, still coloured blue like the last time he had fought Padmé. It had been necessary for him to keep them this way to continue the deception.

But now there was no need, now he could expose himself as what he truly was.

Kuan Yin understood his words. "You two go on," she murmured, getting out her own lightsaber and activating it. "I'll hold him as much as I can."

"No, Master—"

"Do as I say, Padmé!" Kuan Yin warned, bringing up the green blade of her lightsaber.

"But—"

"Come _on_!" Anakin pulled her away and down the corridor.

"NOO!" Padmé screamed, fighting Anakin's grip. But he was too strong for her.

For a moment Padmé was fourteen again and she was facing her Master's destroyer. A being—no creature that seemed to expose hatred and fear as it moved. She heard the taunts, the clash of the blades, heard her Master's death cry. And then…the long blank stare as she turned back. Why had she turned to look? Why did she have to see her Master's murderer standing over the body like a victor? For one moment she saw not the smooth features of Renust Nju, but the scared face of Darth Maxah.

And she was smiling.


	23. Chapter 23

Mace was doing what he could despite not having found Dooku yet, getting the children in safe places and reminding the older ones to arm themselves in case of further attacks. Padmé's nightmare was the form of Maxah, Anakin's was the attack on Coruscant, now Mace Windu was facing his own nightmare: the fall of the Jedi Order.

A Jedi was not just what Mace Windu was, it formed the core of his entire identity. There was no other way he knew to think, act and behave but as a Jedi. But for one moment, one tiny spot on the scope of his life he felt merely human. And vulnerable. But being a Jedi he never let it show.

"Master Windu?"

Mace quickly turned his head. He felt out with the Force, sensing even the tiles on the floor. He knew that voice, and he knew that presence.

"Dooku?"

The former Jedi stepped out into the light of the deserted corridor, his arms hung limply at his sides.

There was no sign of a lightsaber.

Mace stood likewise, it would only take a split-second for Mace to get his own weapon.

"That's why you let yourself be captured, wasn't it?" Mace asked him. "I knew there was something wrong with you being taken alive. _I_ couldn't have done it."

"Really?" Dooku smiled quietly. "I would have _preferred_ you to have come after me yourself. You know I always preferred an educated audience."

"Your pride seems not to have lessened," Mace remarked.

"It's quite a pleasant surprise to see old friends haven't changed," Dooku averred.

"Friends?" The Jedi Master challenged. "I don't think you have any, Dooku and I doubt if you ever did."

"Still that arrogance," Dooku commented. "You haven't changed either."

"At least I'm not like you." Mace narrowed his eyes into slits. "I haven't joined the Sith."

"Perhaps I am the one who made the right choice," Dooku suggested lightly.

"We shall see."

The two combatants watched each other for a moment, not moving, not speaking and no more than two metres between them.

Then with a loud shout, Mace leapt at him, arms out-stretched and lightsaber whirling in a purple blur. Dooku clashed against him, his red blade moving quickly to block the Jedi Master's blows as he took several backward steps.

Dooku attacked, his movements quick, clear and precise and entangling Mace's purple blade with his own red one. He smiled, his face lit up with the red and purple light as he held his postion, pressing hard, and harder…

Mace Windu screwed up his face with the force that Dooku was placing on his blade, then he span back in a circle until he was behind Dooku. Yet the Sith was ready with a quick slashing attack that Mace knew was as false as it looked, he merely took one blow at Dooku's lightsaber before whirling around to face him at his back.

Count Dooku may have been the master of the saber-to-saber style of Form II, developed millennia ago at the newly present Sith, yet Mace was more than a match for him. The dark-skinned Jedi Master had developed his own form, a variant of Form VII also known as Juyo. It was known amongst his students as Vaapad, after a devastating multi-armed creature on Sarapin. One could never know how many arms a vaapad had it had until you killed it.

That was the exterior Vaapad, but not the core. Vaapad veered dangerously close to the dark side as the user had to allow themselves to _enjoy_ the fight. They had to give fuel to their emotions and become inside the turbulent storm they appeared to be.

It was an intense contest, as well as an engaging one. The master of the old style against the creator of the new, and it was a contest that Mace knew he could not lose.

----------------------------

When they arrived at the Chancellor's office, it suddenly occurred to Padmé that they should have brought someone else along. Perhaps if they had looked for Master Windu, or even urged Master Yoda to come with them.

But such thoughts were immaterial now, and after all, was not Anakin the Chosen One?

Padmé glanced at him briefly. _Can he be depended on?_

"Anakin," she said uncertainly, "we may _have_ to kill him."

Anakin glowered at her.

"No, I'm serious," she told him. "Nju and Dooku are in the Temple on _his_ orders, you saw what they were doing."

"He may have reasons," Anakin defended.

"Anakin! He's _murdering_ Jedi!" Padmé reminded him. "He murdered _millions_ of innocent beings during this war, and he murdered…" She stared at him a single tear tracing down her face. "He murdered my old Master, Shakya Devi."

"But Padmé…"

"And Qui-Gon!"

Anakin stopped for a moment. Padmé used this hesitation to its fullest extent.

"I'm not sure what we have to do," Padmé explained. "But what I do know is that he _trusts _you."

"He's my friend, Padmé." Anakin argued.

"No he's not," she snapped.

And without waiting for him to argue she pushed open the door.

----------------------------

When Anakin emerged into his office alone, Palpatine could not help but smile. Perhaps he had underestimated the young man, it was clear he had _not_ told anyone and would…

The smile disappeared as Padmé walked into the room. She stared at him, her face offering a challenge. Yet Palpatine could be accommodating, he looked at them both as if surprised to see them there.

"Padmé, Anakin, quite a surprise," he said with a chuckle. "What could bring you both here at such a late hour?"

"You may dispense with the pleasantries, Chancellor," Padmé said. "Or perhaps we should say…Darth Sidious."

Palpatine was sitting somewhat below Anakin and Padmé, in a chair surrounded by computer access panels. He smiled blandly at Padmé, not the least perturbed by her remarks.

"That is not a crime, Padmé, in itself," Palpatine remarked mildly, "if I last checked the constitution I believe it said that religious beliefs were a personal matter."

Padmé stood before him, her hands by her sides. "It is if you have controlled both sides of the war from start to finish."

"And how could you know that?" Palpatine asked her, all of the colour going out of his voice.

"It is enough that we know," Padmé replied icily. "And not just the Jedi, the Senate will soon know what you have done too."

"I _am_ the Senate!" Palpatine spat, glowering at Padmé. Yet his next words were addressed to Anakin. "You see what I have to put up with, Anakin? And she's only one Jedi, how many others will I have blundering into my office this evening?"

"Don't listen to him Anakin," Padmé pleaded, but Palpatine flashed her such a look that she was silenced.

"So what are you going to do, Anakin?" Palpatine asked him. "Have you explained to her that I'm the only one who can let you be with the woman that you love?"

"Anakin, he's lying!" Padmé shouted, but Anakin did not seem to hear her.

"The Jedi Order will soon no longer exist," Palpatine told him. "My apprentices will see to that. There is no need for you to ally yourself with those who wish to do you harm."

"But I don't like what you've done," Anakin said at last. "The war, the killings, that's not right." He narrowed his eyes at the Sith Lord. "That's evil."

"Sometimes these things are necessary, Anakin," Palpatine explained. "But I am giving you the choice. It's them or me."

Anakin didn't answer.

"Perhaps I should put it more accurately," Palpatine continued. "It's them or _Padmé_."

At the flash in Anakin's eyes Padmé knew that Palpatine had him. Yet before she could do anything else he made a subtle gesture and the heavy door at the end of the room was closed and bolted.

They were now locked in a room with a Sith Lord, what was going to happen now?


	24. Chapter 24

As the lightsaber fight between Mace Windu and Count Dooku neared them, Threepio knew they would have to find a new hiding place. He suggested it to Artoo.

Artoo chirped and rotated his dome.

"You know a good place?" the protocol droid asked, for once he decided not to dispute the matter with Artoo. "Show me."

They were several corridors down from the fight when they heard the sound of someone crying. At Artoo's suggestion and to Threepio's distress they followed the sound.

They finally came to a group of about five younglings, looking very scared and lost. A Togruta child looked at Threepio hopefully.

"Have you seen Master Yoda?" the youngling asked in a small voice.

"No, I'm sorry but I am afraid I haven't," Threepio replied gently.

"I'm scared," said a dark-eyed girl. "Can you take us where it's _safe_?"

Threepio looked at Artoo, the little droid chirped affirmatively.

"Artoo says he knows somewhere where we can go," Threepio translated. "He will lead us there."

Shakily, the younglings got to their feet and followed R2-D2. One of them tapped the droid curiously and in response Artoo spun his dome and chirped wildly.

"You're funny!" The child said giggling.

But Threepio was not impressed. "Really Artoo," he admonished. "This is not the time to be playing games!"

----------------------------

Mace Windu whirled his blade around in a deadly arc, curving it low as it he moved with it. Then he attacked quickly, little blows here and there before coming to end with a devastating lunge.

Yet as always, their blades crossed and the fight seemed won by neither one.

For a moment the Jedi stood his ground, his blade a purple whir with all the fury of Vaapad. Dooku clashed against him but even the former Jedi's more classical style of combat could not penetrate Mace's defence. The two collided again, Mace spinning out from the clash and giving ground to the Sith Lord, yet closing in on him with a pace that was almost blinding.

Windu attacked. Vicious, strong strokes that Dooku had not seen the like of for a long time. Left, right, then left again and following that a low lunge that forced Dooku to jump so it missed severing his ankles. Yet always he was ready for a counterattack, always the red blade was ready to parry the purple one.

But Mace could see that Dooku was tiring, the former Jedi had obviously been out of training while in his cell and it was starting to show. And there was the fact that this was one of the effects of the dark side, it _depended_ on the emotions of the self and those could be exhausted without much difficulty.

A Jedi, on the other hand, merely stepped into the Force as one might step into a river and let the flow and current dictate their movements. Until they were a mere _instrument_ of the Force.

"Are you proud of what you've done?" Mace demanded. "Of all the innocents you killed? Of all the worlds you've left dead?"

"And the Jedi have done nothing less?" Dooku taunted. "Your hands, I believe, are as dirty as mine."

With a flash Mace remembered Haruun Kal and Depa. This was only a moment, but it was all the time Dooku needed to attack. He lunged forward, twisting his lightsaber quickly and forcing Mace to retreat. Yet Mace was not one to be on the defensive for very long. He followed through with his parry with a counter-attack, gaining ground on Dooku and forcing him against a wall.

He then pressed the Sith against the wall his knee and pushed the purple blade close to his neck.

"The Sith will never rule," he said, drawing his arm back so he could slice off Dooku's head.

"We shall see," said a voice next to his ear.

And before Mace realised it a lightsaber blade was thrust through his chest. He gasped, surely there was not _another_ Sith in the Temple? Could it be Sidious? Then he looked down at the blade protruding from his body. It was _blue_.

_What?_

He turned his head to see the smiling face of Renust Nju.

"You…too…Nju?" Mace gasped, the breath fading from his lungs.

"Yes," Nju replied triumphantly. "I have long looked forward to this, _friend_."

And with the last word he drew the lightsaber out.

It took the sound of a lightsaber igniting for Dooku and Nju to realise they were not alone. Behind them, his face hit up by the green blade of his lightsaber, was Yoda and he was not alone either.

Clustered in a groups around the Jedi Master, Nju and Dooku began to recognise faces. Shaak Ti… Agen Kolar…Kit Fisto…Saesee Tiin…Quickly there were flashes in the darkness of blue and green as one Jedi after another revealed themselves.

Slowly, silently they gathered around, faces shaded by their hoods. In the middle of the line stood Yoda, his eyes set, his lightsaber held at ready.

He gave a nod and the Jedi moved, bringing their weapons upon the Sith Lords.


	25. Chapter 25

Palpatine looked from Padmé to Anakin and then back again at Padmé. Here was one who had stood in his way time and time again and for some reason remained alive. That mistake would have to be corrected if he was to at all succeed with Skywalker. He knew Padmé was the catalyst to turn the turbulent young Jedi over to his side, but she had to be played right. One step in the wrong direction and Anakin would swing the other way, _against_ him. Years of planning could be ruined in barely a second.

"You should have died on the _Invisible Hand_," Palpatine said in a low voice, he felt Anakin's anger, he had to be careful here.

"But I didn't," Padmé replied with quickly summoned confidence. "Or should it have been Imbroglio when I discovered Nju's treachery? Or perhaps even on Naboo by the one called Maxah?" She smiled quietly. "Somehow, by no fault of my own, I have a knack of getting in your way and stopping your plans. Don't think you will succeed; the living Force won't allow it."

"I control the Force," spat the Sith Lord, "and the fact that you were in the way of my plans is the misfortune of the Jedi."

Anakin stepped forward and eyed Palpatine suspiciously. "Padmé's not just another Jedi," he warned.

"Oh no?" Palpatine raised an eyebrow. "Then how can you explain her putting the Jedi code before everything? Even before you?"

Anakin paled. "She…has her reasons," he stammered.

"Reasons you don't agree with," Palpatine reminded him. "Have you asked yourself Anakin if she hides behind those reasons? Is she trying to protect you or…" He let his voice drift for a moment, seeing the young Jedi's torment. "…or does she hide because there is nothing there at all?"

"I never—" Padmé protested, but Sidious silenced her with a gesture.

Anakin was silent for a long moment. "I don't understand," he said finally.

"Think, Anakin!" Palpatine's gaze was impenetrable. "Or better still, why don't you ask her yourself?" He smiled indulgently at Padmé. "I'm sure if you told Padmé about what I said you will get your answer."

Padmé stared between them, what was this about? Was this about the offer that Palpatine had made to Anakin? Or did it have something to do with how Anakin said he could save her?

Either way, she didn't like it.

----------------------------

With a beam of light projected form his blue dome, R2-D2 diligently led the younglings through the darkened corridor to safety. C-3PO took up the rear, reassuring as best he could.

The astromech droid made a soft murmur as they rounded a corner.

"Artoo says it is not much further," Threepio translated.

Finally they came to a vast room with many electronic panels along the walls. Closer inspection revealed that below each panel was a small alcove in the wall and in most—but not all—of the alcoves was a lightsaber.

Here were the records of every Jedi who had—or at least in the words of the Masters who kept the records—become one with the Force. One each control panel one could view a small hologram as well as a readout that had details of each Jedi's life, including how they died if it was known. Some of these records were as old as the Jedi Order itself, but a disturbing number were very recent.

Yet it was into the older records that Artoo led the group, right into the back of the last row where the only way out was the way they came in. The younglings looked at Threepio for answers, what were they doing here?

"Artoo, do you really—"

R2-D2 blatted a reply and trundled over to where one of the larger computer outlets was situated. This was not connected to any record, it controlled the security system.

After inserting his computer arm, Artoo rotated the socket back and forward then let out a series of soft beeps and whistles.

"Artoo says that he has activated the security system and there is a ray shield at the end of this row," Threepio informed them, he looked beyond Artoo. Sure enough his photoreceptors could pick up the familiar flicker of a ray shield and his aural sensors could identify the soft hum. Artoo then beeped something else which made Threepio stare at him. "What do you mean no one knows where we are? Surely you're not expecting _us_ to do anything more?"

"Artoo's right," said the Togruta child as he put a small hand on Artoo's dome. "No one will find us here."

Artoo chirped appreciatively.

----------------------------

It was a fury of noise and colour, blue and green light everywhere as Dooku and Nju dodged and parried the blows that were launched at them.

And still more Jedi were coming, completely surrounding the pair and cutting off any chance of escape—or so they thought.

For some reason Renust Nju started to melt into the crowd, and this wasn't particularly noticed. Perhaps it was because his garb as a Jedi blended with everyone else, or even because his lightsabers were blue were as Dooku's blade was red.

Whatever the reason, Dooku was soon alone in the maelstrom of light and colour and Nju was nowhere to be seen.

But someone noticed his escape, for the furtive way Nju slunk into the shadows was quite suspicious. With a grim smile, Yoda limped after him, his gimer stick tapping on the hard floor.

----------------------------

"Anakin, don't listen to him," Padmé pleaded, grabbing his arm firmly. "He's trying to turn you against me, turn you into someone you're not."

"But I need to know," Anakin insisted.

"Need to know what?" Padmé demanded.

Anakin looked down for a moment, taking a few breaths before he could speak. "Remember how I told you there was a way for us to be together?" he asked her, continuing in a rush before she could answer. "Think about it: no Jedi rules, no hiding, nothing that's been keeping us apart."

"I don't understand," Padmé said.

"You know he made me an offer," Anakin continued as if he hadn't heard her. "But that wasn't the reason I—" He stopped, staring past her, searching for the right words. "It's because of _you_!" He blurted out finally, grabbing her and pulling her close. "I want to be with you, Padmé, and I'm willing to put everything aside for just that one chance. Even…" His voice failed him again and he screwed his eyes shut as if in great pain. "Even if it means making sacrifices I never thought I would."

"Sacrifices?" The word hung in the air for a few minutes while she tried to understand his words.

Then he looked up at her and she knew what his meant. Those…_raw_ eyes, the same ones that had told her about the visions, those eyes that revealed his worst fears.

Padmé felt herself shrinking from Anakin's grip.

"No…I'm sorry, Anakin. I can't do this." She stepped away from him, wondering not for the first time what they were doing there at all. "I won't let you do this."

"Won't _let_ me?" Anakin rounded on her, his eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"I can't understand why you would make such compromises to get what you want," she told him. "Compromises with yourself, against everything you believe in."

"But none of that matters, Padmé," he said, stepping towards her and reaching for her arm. "_You're_ all that matters to me, and it has always been that way."

"No!" Padmé was firmer this time, shrugging off his hold on her. She kept all emotion out of her voice, but inside she could feel herself breaking. A part of her wanted to scream at Anakin for being so blind, for believing the lies that Palpatine had fed him. _But I can't do that_, she said to herself, _if I fight darkness with darkness then I'm lost too._

"What are you saying?" Anakin asked her incredulously. "Are you telling me…that you don't care?"

_I care far too much_, she replied in thought, though she knew better than to say that out loud. She shook her head, smiling sadly at him. "I never said that," she murmured, "but I can't allow you to do this, you'll destroy yourself and…" Padmé could feel her voice giving out as emotion overtook her, she had to blink away a few hot tears before she could speak again. "Please," she said, her request was simple and heartfelt, yet it made Anakin's anger subside. Satisfied, she turned back to Palpatine, after all he was the _real_ enemy. "You know that the only way to turn Anakin is through me," she said with narrowed eyes. "He won't let you strike me down."

"Really?" Palpatine's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "I was _counting_ on that."


	26. Chapter 26

It did not take Nju long to realise he was being followed. He quickly spun around, lightsabers extended from each hand.

Yet Yoda just stood there, his gimer stick held vertical in his hands, his face calm and focus. This infuriated Nju, he glared at the shorter Jedi Master.

"You knew about me, didn't you?" Nju demanded, but he didn't move. "You could have destroyed me and stopped all this."

"Destroy you I could not," Yoda said firmly. "And _know_ of this I did not, _suspect_ of it only I did."

Nju laughed, a raucous booming laugh that bounced of the walls.

"So this is your failure, then?" Nju crossed and uncrossed the blades of his weapons. "You admit this is _your_ fault?"

"Cause this you did when chose the dark side you did," Yoda told him. "Knew I did that you would destroy yourself, and knew also I did that destroy others you would." His gaze dropped, his tone saddened. "Yet failed I did in not acting, faith I still have."

"In what?" Nju smiled. "Your Chosen One is about to join the ranks of the Sith, my Master Sidious will see to that. And this, all here," he gestured with one of his blue blades at the bodies of the Jedi lying around. "This is but a taste, not one Jedi will remain standing."

"Not if something to say about it have I," Yoda promised. "Failed you I may have, fail the Jedi I never will." He gave a long cold stare that chilled Nju to the core. "My ally is the Force," Yoda said in a low voice, "and a powerful ally that is."

"The Force will fail you," Nju taunted, yet not as confident as before, "it is the dark side that is rising now."

"Count on that do not," Yoda told him, opening his cloak and summoning a small lightsaber to his hand. He pressed the emitter and with a snap-hiss the green blade extended from the end.

Mace Windu, now lying dead not far behind them, had been known for his prowess with a lightsaber while Yoda was noted for his knowledge of the Force. Yet Windu had only ever been the second most powerful swordsman in the Order, Yoda was the first.

Nju stepped into an aggressive position, crossing his blades in a menacing X before his face. Yet before he could attack Yoda launched himself at him, lightsaber swinging, like a sonic blast out of a cannon.

----------------------------

Surrounded by Jedi, Dooku was tiring. As much as he tried to lees the numbers of his aggressors there were still more that came for him. Even if he flung several back with the Force, more would step up in their place.

Not only was he tiring but his grip on the Force was slipping. Each stroke of a lightsaber brought back memories he wanted to forget, particularly when the faces were familiar.

Yet unlike Nju, there was no escape for Dooku. Even so, he fought on.

----------------------------

Palpatine stared at Padmé for a long moment, saying nothing, his face expressionless. Then suddenly he opened himself to the dark side and Padmé was almost knocked off her feet by the wave of raw power. The Sith Lord was like an event horizon, a nexus of darkness. Padmé could feel herself drowning as if in a turbulent current; it was not to be compared with Dooku's cold anger or Maxah's unrestrained fury. Not even what she had felt from Nju on Imbroglio was close to this.

It was a torrent, an avalanche, she could feel the dark energy rasping against her…like…like she cast her mind back and suddenly remembered. This was like the sandstorm she and Anakin had walked through on Tatooine, with the wind so strong and grit so numerous it was liked walking through a murky liquid.

Yet slowly, and even though she tried to fight it, she could feel the energy penetrate her defences.

Her hand instinctively crossed towards her lightsaber, quickly she moved her hand back.

Palpatine noticed the gesture and smiled, yet he did not let up the storm he was sending Padmé's way.

_A Jedi is always calm_, she reminded herself, _a Jedi stays at one with the Force_. Yet these words did little to help her against what Palpatine—no Sidious—was throwing at her.

And he just sat there, smiling as he watched her torment. Padmé was furious at him, a thought that slowly grew into something else. _He may be a Sith_, she said to herself, _but he's unarmed. It wouldn't take me long to…No, that's just what he wants!_

"I can feel the conflict within you, Padmé," the Sith Lord goaded in a low voice. "You're right, I am unarmed and would not take you long to strike me down. You _know_ you want to do it."

"I won't give in," Padmé said, "you'll be forced to kill me."

"Will I?" This seemed to amuse Sidious somewhat.

"Padmé, he wants to help us," Anakin said.

Padmé stared at him. "No, he doesn't." She looked back at Sidious, he continued to sit there. Sooner or later he was going to find away of using her against Anakin, and Padmé wasn't sure if she could work against that.

_It would make things simpler if I just killed him now_, she though viciously, _No_, she reasoned, _that's the dark side…_

Or was it? After all, couldn't taking the life of Sidious _save_ more lives than it destroyed? He had destroyed so many already, it seemed a greater evil _not_ to kill him. Yet there was a persistent voice at the back of her mind that warned her that this was not the right thing to do. For perhaps the first time, Padmé ignored that voice.

_Yes_, she decided, the dark side humming in her ears, _there is nothing wrong with this, and it needs to be done._

She extended her hands and summoned her lightsaber with the Force. The green blade flashed from the hilt and closed towards Sidious' prone form with phenomenal speed.

Yet the blade did not follow through, instead it clashed against something, a _blue_ lightsaber blade.

Padmé turned to stare. "_Anakin?_"


	27. Chapter 27

From where they were in the Temple Memorial Room, Artoo, Threepio and the younglings could hear the crackle of the lightsabers clashing as well as rather disturbing vocal sounds.

"I don't like the sounds of this," said the protocol droid.

Artoo beeped encouragingly.

----------------------------

Yoda's style was firm yet forceful, quick and sharp yet phenomenally powerful. This more than made up for his small size, in fact his size was more of a disadvantage to Nju. The taller Jedi Master constantly had to stoop to attack or parry, either that or dodge when Yoda sprang from the ground towards him.

In spite of—or perhaps because of—his style of lightsaber combat, Nju found it increasingly harder to attack. Every lunge he made was blocked, every time he tried to follow through with a feint or parry Yoda quickly intercepted it.

Yet it was to be expected, as the one who had first taught Renust Nju how to use a lightsaber was Yoda himself. He knew every move that Nju was about to make, and then some.

This incensed Nju and made him attack with a new viciousness. Yoda sensed this and he circled at Nju's feet, his lightsaber a blur as the green blade forced him backwards. Suddenly Nju made a low double-attack, their blades crossed, crackling menacingly.

"Win this you cannot," Yoda said in a low voice, "lost already you did before you began to fight."

"It is _you_ who are the one that has lost, Master Yoda," Nju snarled, he disentangled his blades and flipped backwards down the corridor. He landed some distance from Yoda, his lightsabers aligned perpendicular to each other.

Then he started to turn, slowly at first, then faster and faster until he was a whirl of blue motion, the blade snaking dangerously around as he closed in on Yoda.

Yoda made a daring leap towards him, somersaulting through the air and stopping Nju's attack with one single blow.

"Arrogant, you always have been," Yoda observed dryly.

Nju made an inhumane roar and jumped further away, sinking into an aggressive position. Yoda followed him.

----------------------------

"Anakin, what are you _doing_?"

For a moment they stood there, the blue and green blades crossed over Sidious' face. Padmé then swung her blade back, yet Anakin stepped close to her and blocked her blow.

"Anakin, stand back!" Her voice had the authority of an order.

"I can't let you do this Padmé," Anakin said, his voice ringing with a sharp warning.

"You don't understand." Padmé span away from him and circled back towards Sidious.

"I _do_ understand!" Anakin flashed, putting his body between her and Sidious. "I thought you were _different_! But you're not, you're just like the rest of _them_!" He attacked her now, forcing her to the back of the room and towards the door. "He's right, you don't feel _anything_ for me and you _never_ did!"

"That's not true!" Padmé made an attack so close to him that their faces were almost touching, she could see the green of her weapon reflected in his face. Suddenly her vision became clearer, her anger fell away like a garment and she realised what she was doing. "Anakin…" She stepped back for a moment, her lightsaber held loosely in one hand. "Anakin, I don't want to fight you."

"I'm not listening to your Jedi lies, Padmé," Anakin snarled, "not anymore." Yet he made no move to attack her.

"Jedi lies?" Padmé repeated. "Anakin this _me_, _I'm_ talking to you as a _person_."

"No, you're not," Anakin barked. "What you're doing is trying to get _me_ on your side so I can help you do something I'll regret." He brought his lightsaber towards her, stepping close as Padmé stepped back. "You can't make me do something I _know_ is wrong."

Padmé could see the anger in his eyes, raw, menacing like the front of a breaking storm. They were not the eyes of the Anakin she knew, but Padmé recognised them all the same. This was not Anakin, but this was who he could _become_. In spite of her feelings for him could she let that happen? Could she make the ultimate Jedi choice? Could she put aside her personal feelings for the greater good as all Jedi were required by the code to do?

_I know I can_, Padmé thought as she circled Anakin, her blade held in a low defence. _But do I want to? Because if I do I have no chance of having Anakin on my side again_, the thought opened up a hole in her stomach, _if I turn against him, that's it._

"So what will it be, Padmé?" Anakin asked her, his eyes watching her every move. "What matters to you the most? Me? Or the Jedi?"

For a moment Padmé remembered the nine-year-old boy she had held in her arms as he cried on Queen Nalanda's starship. The same boy who had grown into a young man and had confessed his undying love for her without words and in a way that could not be revoked. And she had responded in kind, she had given her love as readily as he had given her his. Even if only for a moment as brief as a raindrop hitting a pool of water.

Then she compared him with the man that stood before her. He was a stranger; someone else's eyes were peering out of his face.

And then she knew.

"I'm sorry, Anakin," she said as she brought her lightsaber higher, "I love you, and I tried to save you,"—she met Anakin's gaze directly—"but I won't let you destroy yourself."Padmé then opened herself up to the Force.

"Padmé?" Anakin had not moved his blade from the guard position.

With a light in her eyes that was almost blinding, Padmé attacked.


	28. Chapter 28

At the entrance to the Temple Memorial room, Yoda sprung forward powered by the Force. He landed in front of Renust Nju and took a defensive position in the doorway.

"Good, but not good enough," Nju said, making a low slashing attack that sent Yoda into the room.

They continued to fight until they were both inside the vast room, Yoda retreating until he was against the wall. Then the little Jedi Master ran up the wall, jumped over Nju and had the taller Jedi on the defensive.

Their blades crossed again, and this time Nju was forced back against the wall, losing his footing and almost falling over. Yoda used this moment of hesitation to its full advantage, attacking Nju's left weapon which was hanging uselessly at one side. The green blade sliced through the barrel of the lightsaber, taking half of Nju's hand with it.

Nju gave a loud yell, examining his mangled hand in astonishment and staring at Yoda incredulously.

Yoda's gaze was measured and firm. "Stand down _now_ will you?"

Nju gave another shout, attacking with his remaining weapon, Yoda blocked the blow and forced Nju back into a corner. Nju jumped over him into the middle of the room, slashing his blue lightsaber on the floor as he landed.

"I'll never give in," he declared. "And you're too weak to destroy me even if you think you have won."

"Destroy you I need not," Yoda chided gently. "Destroy itself darkness always does. Never learned that lesson you did."

Yoda stretched out his free left hand, reaching into the Force.

----------------------------

"Did you hear that?" Threepio said. "It sounded like…"

"A lightsaber," said one of the younglings. "Master Yoda and the Sith are in the room."

R2-D2 muttered something rather nervously.

"Artoo says there are quite a number of lightsabers igniting," Threepio translated. "Yet he says he can only detect two lifeforms aside from us." He stared at the astromech droid. "What are you talking about? Surely not two lifeforms could use _all_ those lightsabers?"

Artoo beeped in astonishment but didn't retract his findings.

----------------------------

Circling towards him in a devastating circle were lightsabers that Yoda had summoned with the Force from the niches in the wall. Blue and green and sometimes even colours like orange or turquoise. Yoda closed his eyes and brought the lightsabers together in a line, the blades all vertical.

The line started to turn, it started to turn _around_ where Renust Nju was standing.

"What in the—" He started to attack the blades that were coming towards him but Yoda was ready for this, for within seconds Nju was completely surrounded. He stared around him, through the bars of his lightsaber cage, there was no way out as the handles were above his head and at his feet, no room to move either way.

Yoda came forward and stood in front of him, his eyes were opened but the strain from holding the lightsabers there was apparent in his face. He said nothing; he didn't need to, the object lesson he had shown Nju spoke for itself.

----------------------------

In a curious way it was similar to when Padmé and Anakin first fought on Naboo. Their styles were almost unchanged. Anakin with his brash, powerful and almost arrogant way of manoeuvring against Padmé's lighter, quicker and more agile form.

Yet where Padmé was completely immersed in the living Force, Anakin used his anger as fuel for his attacks. So in a way the fight _was_ different. Before it had been intense, but not deadly, almost playful. There was nothing light-hearted about the way they clashed now or about their intent.

Several times their blades intermingled, neither one gaining an advantage. But it was not long before they were both at it again.

Anakin used brute force to augment his attacks, spinning his lightsaber close to his body before making a single, strong lunge at Padmé. She twisted out of his range, her lightsaber moving with are as she turned and then attacked him from behind.

But Anakin was quick to intercept her attack, blocking her quickly. Left, then right, then left again, pressing the blue blade hard against Padmé's green one.

Padmé span out away from him, her blade in a trail behind her as she moved. Anakin moved with her, his movements mimicking hers. She stepped back again, then span her lightsaber around and thrust the blade forward with a thrusting motion. It took a moment for Anakin to move out of the path of her blade, and another one for him to bring his lightsaber blade up to lock with hers.

They stared at each other, not speaking, yet within seconds they were at it again.

With her lightsaber low beside her leg, Padmé turned further away, giving ground and forcing him away from where Sidious continued to sit. Anakin rounded on her, trying to gain the upper hand and lead the fight where he wanted it to go, but she didn't let him. And when he turned around to block her way, Padmé brought up her lightsaber against his and then flipped over his left shoulder.

Furious, Anakin span after her but Padmé was on the offensive, her lightsaber everywhere at once and all he could do was deflect it. She then withdrew again, coming to a stop a short distance away from Anakin with her lightsaber in a low guard position.

Anakin attacked, making his lunged as wide as he could to trap Padmé and force her to move the fight _his_ way, but she didn't. She simply fell back again, and Anakin could see she was running out of ground as behind her was a large flat table. Eventually she would have to take the offensive, eventually she would have to force _him_ back and he would somehow gain the upper hand.

The blue lightsaber blade snaked dangerously close to Padmé's body, she twisted out of its path but she could only hold her own blade up as his blade continued it's swing. The two blades were locked, and with Anakin's body blocking the other side Padmé was trapped.

For a moment her eyes caught his, both of them remembering the _last_ time they had both been in this position, and what had happened _after_ that. Anakin's eyes narrowed, that didn't matter now, Padmé cared _nothing_ for him as Palpatine had said.

"What was that you said about old tricks?" he snarled, his mouth forming a grim line.

Padmé shook her head. "You still haven't learned," she said, smiling sadly at him.

Using the Force to give her attack strength, Padmé batted away Anakin's lightsaber with her own and then jumped onto the table, her feet impacting with Anakin's knees as she ascended. She landed with her knees slightly bent, above him and with a greater advantage.

With a howl of rage Anakin jumped onto the table with her, narrowly missing Padmé's lightsaber as he did. He threw her back with both the Force and his weapon letting his anger and frustration give fuel to his attack. Once, twice, three times Padmé tried to respond to his blows with several of her own, but each and every time he was ready with a speed and power that was nothing short of astonishing. When Padmé tried to retreat, jumped to the other end of the table away from Anakin, Anakin responded by slicing the table in half so the two pieces tilted away from each other, one part taking Padmé with it.

Anakin attacked her again just as Padmé was falling against a wall, she felt the hardness against her shoulders and the middle of her boots was just touching the severed middle of the table. Frowning in concentration she pushed the table back again with the Force, feeling it tilt towards the other half while she was still standing on it, he lightsaber held to the side to deflect anything Anakin might put her way.

This did not impress Anakin, in fact it added fuel to his fury as he attacked for the third time, this time forcing Padmé back to where _he_ wanted the fight to be.

On the other side of the room Sidious watched as the two combatants neared, smiling as he noticed Anakin how had the advantage. Padmé may have been more than a match for him, but Anakin was clearly the better fighter. It would not be long before Anakin killed her himself, which was what Sidious intended all along. Anakin's pain of his own actions would be enough for Sidious to turn him, and the galaxy would not stand a chance at what the two of them combined could unleash.

And somehow, Padmé realised this. Deep in the midst of the fight, the noise and light not penetrating her concentration at all, she felt a subtle nudging from the Force. It moved her arms for her to block Anakin, and made her jump away from him and run towards Palpatine.

"No! Padmé!" Anakin was after her, his lightsaber snaking dangerously close to where she was standing. _She can't mean it…_Anakin though desperately_…No…_

His heart gave out when Padmé rounded on Sidious, forcing Anakin back to give her room to attack the Sith Lord.

"Padmé, NOOOO!" Anakin lunged at her wildly, his attack uncalculated and without purpose.

For a moment their blades crossed again, the blue and green intermingling to form a bright turquoise. Padmé smiled sadly, she knew what she had to do next.

"You'll thank me later," she whispered, stepping back and then attacked Anakin with such a blow that he was left reeling. While he was recovering she reached into the Force and hurled Anakin onto the other side of the room, colliding heavily with a chair. And before he recovered she confronted Palpatine, her green blade before her, her mind calm and collected.

Sidious was furious. Padmé had somehow managed to get in his way again and still live to tell the tale. And again he had underestimated her, he had counted on the fact that her connection to Anakin was above everything else. But he had been wrong, before anything else Padmé was a Jedi.

_She won't get away_, Sidious vowed, curling his fingers as he gathered the dark side within himself, _not this time, not this time._

"You have been ruined my plans for far too long," he spat, getting to his feet as Padmé's blade inched closer. "Not even your Jedi weapon can save you from the dark side of the Force."

Sidious made a sweeping motion with his hand that threw Padmé back, she was on one knee near the floor but still held her lightsaber aloft.

"I'm…I'm not going to give in," she said in a shaking voice. "I'm not weak like Nju."

"More the pity," Sidious snarled. "You could have been so much more." He spread his hands and blue lightning shot from his fingertips, Padmé closed her eyes with the pain but was silent. "You know what it feels like, don't you?" he taunted in a low voice. "You've felt it before, it's why the dark side is stronger, it can destroy you from within."

"Liar!" Padmé spat, her hands fumbling for her dropped lightsaber.

Sidious cast the lightning at her again, not a short burst like before but long and measured out. This time Padmé was on her knees, her hands grabbing the floor as the pain travelled through her.

"You fool!" Sidious said, the tip of his boot finding Padmé's chin and forcing it up. "Only in the end do you even _begin_ to understand!"

He let loose with the lightning again. Anakin, slightly winded and a little bruised, got to his feet and walked towards Sidious.


	29. Chapter 29

Driven to exhaustion, Dooku was on his knees and knew his death would come within a matter of seconds. He knew not it Nju was still alive and cared little. He cared less if Sidious managed to turn Skywalker to the dark side or not.

For the first time Dooku considered the possibility that he may have been wrong in giving up the Jedi. And he may have even been wrong for choosing the dark side of the Force.

The very next moment was his last, several lightsaber blades extinguished the life left in him. But it was never known exactly who killed him.

----------------------------

Inside his lightsaber cage Nju stared defiantly at Yoda. Bested, immobilised, but not defeated. He still had one move to make.

"This is when you kill me, isn't it," Nju snarled. "For all your Jedi morals and codes I _know_ you want to do it."

Yoda shook his head. "To kill is not the Jedi way."

"But you know there is no saving me," Nju argued, his voice was low and cold. "There are limits to compassion, even to yours."

Yoda did not answer, for a long moment he examined his former student. Where had he gone wrong in his instruction? Where had the light ended and the path to the dark side began? Yoda had his suspicions but like with Nju's treachery before the Clone Wars had begun, he had no definite answers.

Yet Nju needed no answers, no explanations and no excuses. All he wanted was an end, and it was up to him to provide it. He held up the deactivated hilt of his remaining lightsaber.

"You'll never know, Master Yoda," Nju told him as he pressed the end to his chest. "Even you, with all your knowledge of the Force, will never truly know what the dark side truly is and why it ensnared me."

He met Yoda's eyes and smiled, then pressed the emitter.


	30. Chapter 30

From the pain of the lightning Padmé saw faces, her fallen Master Kuan Yin, Shakya Devi falling, and finally Maxah, the Sith who haunted Padmé's nightmares afterwards. They screamed at her, shouting different things, moving her body against her will.

But it was actually Padmé herself who was screaming, Padmé herself who was shouting incomprehensibly and writhing under the force of the lightning. And above her, next to Sidious and standing with an expressionless fate was Anakin. He was silently watching, watching her die.

For a moment the lightning subsided, the faces and voices disappeared and she saw Anakin. She noticed not the fact that he was doing nothing, only the fact that he was there and that he was the only one who could stop the constant throes of pain.

"Anakin!" she screamed, her voice shrill with the agony. "Anakin…I love you!" She tensed her face and closed her eyes. "Anakin…_help me!_"

Suddenly Anakin blinked and looked at Padmé as if he had awakened from a dream. He had seen this before, in his vision! _Sidious_ was the Sith he had seen torturing Padmé, _Sidious_ was the reason for her death.

_It's not too late_, Anakin thought frantically, summoning his lightsaber to his hands from his belt. He didn't think that he had known Sidious as Chancellor Palpatine, a man he had admired to the utmost and defended more than once to any who had criticised him. He didn't even think of how he once had seen that same Palpatine as like a father-figure to him, similar to Obi-Wan but telling him things that the Jedi never would.

All Anakin thought of was that the man before him was hurting Padmé, and could be responsible for her death. And that, in Anakin's eyes, was reason enough to act.

He ignited the blade and lunged it between the lightning that was being shot from Sidious's fingers and where it was hitting Padmé. The blue blade absorbed the energy then deflected it back at the Sith, showering Sidious with electricity.

With hate-filled eyes, Sidious stared at Anakin. "Don't you Jedi ever _LEARN_?"

At the last word he shoved Anakin roughly aside, with so much force that the young Jedi was thrown against the window, the back of his head smacked against the glass and shattered it. As he turned away from watching the broken glass cascade over Anakin, Padmé somehow managed to find her lightsaber. When Sidious was again facing her she had the blade out and pointed at him.

Padmé didn't speak, she didn't trust herself to say something and still do what needed to be done. Instead, she let her actions speak for her, lunging forward and impaling Sidious in the stomach with the green blade.

The Sith Lord let out a low moan and fell over, clutching the gaping wound in his belly as Padmé drew her weapon out. With a triumphant smile she stabbed him again, this time in the chest with the last of her remaining strength.

She had the energy to remain standing, yet not enough to keep her on her feet through the energy explosion following Sidious's death. Padmé was thrown across the room, sparks from the smoking corpse shooting at her as she went. She could smell her flesh burning, feel the pain as the electricity sprinted through her veins and nerves. So focused on this she hardly felt herself land on the floor, didn't even open her eyes to see Anakin crawling to his feet and staggering over to her.

Yet when he touched her, when he gently brushed the burnt hair away from her cheek she was able to utter one word.

"Anakin…" she moaned softly, her eyes slowly opening to see his face.


	31. Chapter 31

From the moment his ship emerged from hyperspace, Obi-Wan knew something was wrong. And now he was planetside that feeling only grew stronger.

"Anakin…" he murmured, feeling the young man's pain as if it had been his own.

"You okay, boss?" Cody asked, looking strangely at the Jedi.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "It's Anakin," he said, more to himself than to the clone, "he needs me."

----------------------------

Anakin couldn't believe it, somehow they had survived. They had managed to overcome Sidious and now everything could be all right. True, Padmé was hurt, but nothing a week or two in a bacta tank wouldn't fix. She had burns, as well as a few scratches, but nothing life-threatening.

He knelt beside her, putting his arms around her shoulders to help her sit up.

"We need to get you help," he said, taking Padmé in his arms and walking towards the door.

She gave a low moan of pain. "No…Anakin…"

He stopped. "Okay," he murmured, unsure for a moment and then placed her gently on one of the low couches, one of the few that hadn't been completely fried by the energy explosion. "We'll just wait then, someone will come along soon and then you can go back to the Temple."

But Padmé only smiled. A gentle, weak smile, as if she knew something that he did not.

"You know you can't stop it, Anakin," she said to him faintly. "No more than you couldn't stop your mother from…"

"NO!" Anakin wouldn't allow himself to even _think_ about that. He couldn't lose Padmé, not after everything that had happened, not after what they had been through together and what she had done for him. "Padmé you have to hold on," he said, kneeling on the floor beside her. "You have to be strong for _us_, there's nothing to stop us being together now."

Suddenly he saw a thin silver chain around Padmé's neck where her tunic had burnt away. He pulled on it and with a smile he saw the japor snippet he had given her so long ago secured to the end.

"You kept this?" he asked her in a surprised voice.

"Of course," she replied, "after…" Her voice faltered for a moment. "After I knew…and knew it couldn't happen."

"Knew what?"

Padmé looked at him for a long moment. She owed him the truth, what she had denied him for so long and for his sake.

"I have always loved you Anakin," she said. "There was a long time when …I didn't know, but then when I realised it I had to…" She took a deep breath and then continued. "I had to pretend I didn't, as I knew it could…and would…hurt you."

"_Hurt_ me?" Anakin stared at her as he held her flesh hand in his. "It hurt me worse _not_ knowing, but not that it matters now…" He drew his face close to hers and kissed her, felt her eyelashes brush his face. And most of all, felt her emotion rise with his in the Force, the two joining together as a whole. Yet when he felt this he knew. He could feel her fading, and there was nothing he could do.

Padmé smiled softly as Anakin's tears fell onto her face.

"I…love you, Anakin," she whispered. "You'll…have to…let go."

_My vision!_ Anakin realised with a start.

"Padmé…I can't lose you." His voice faltered as he felt her flicker in the Force. "I just can't…go on if you're not there."

"You…can't…fight it," she said, her voice barely audible and fading fast. "You're…the Chosen One. You…knew this was…meant to happen."

"No, no, don't say that!" He burst out angry with her, angry with her for leaving him, angry with her for the pain that he _knew_ was going to come from losing her, pain that couldn't and wouldn't go away.

He had done everything he could to stop his vision from coming true, and yet, here it was, his worst fears realised. Anakin had not contemplated the consequences of losing Padmé, had not even _considered_ the possibility as all his attention had been focused on _preventing_ it from happening.

This was apparent on his face as Padmé lay there, watching the emotions crossing it one after another. She smiled, could he have been expected to do anything else?

There were things Padmé still wanted to say to him, things that needed to be said but she did not have the time to say them. She knew what would happen, knew that even after Anakin still would not be able to let go, would perhaps even blame _himself_ for not being able to prevent what was going to happen. But that would pass, just as in the beginning when he refused to acknowledge the boundaries between them but had reluctantly done so as there was no choice.

Was there any way to tell him this now? To let him know that what had to happen _had_ to happen and there was nothing you could do change it? It wasn't likely, Anakin never acknowledged Jedi discipline unless he fell over it.

Her hand touched Anakin's face, yet it was barely more than a caress. So fragile. He clutched it, holding her hand within two of his own. Trying to help her hold on, to keep her _here_.

She only smiled, and when she spoke her voice was surprisingly clear if faint.

"There's nothing you can do," she told him. "You're going to survive, don't…" Her voice broke and her last words were barely a whisper. "Don't let…me stop you…"

Her eyes closed as if she were going to sleep, her lips setting in a soft smile. Her hand grew lip inside his, the tiny pulse of life that had been hers faded in the Force. It was only then, when Anakin could no longer _feel_ her beside him, that he knew.

She was gone, and he was still there.

As the sky started to lighten and the cold morning air swirled in from the shattered windows Anakin still sat there. Holding Padmé's hand as he had when she was still alive. Motionless, still not fully grasping what had happened.

She _couldn't_ be gone.


	32. Chapter 32

In the Temple Memorial Room, Yoda sat in silence, examining the smoking remains of Renust Nju where his body had been carved up by the cage of lightsabers. The Sith had gone, the Force told him that much but he still did not understand. He still had one question that he would not get any easy answer to: _Why?_

Yet the Force answered him, and in the form of Qui-Gon Jinn.

Yoda merely smiled and looked up when he saw the slain Jedi Master walk into the room. Qui-Gon looked different now; when he was alive he had always been rushing off somewhere. But now he looked…centred, a word that Yoda never thought he would associate with him.

Qui-Gon sat on the floor opposite Yoda and offered the smaller Jedi Master a sympathetic smile.

_You only did what you could, old friend, _Qui-Gon said. _Do not blame yourself._

"So much more could I have done," Yoda murmured, shaking his head decidedly.

_And less_, pointed out Qui-Gon, raising an eyebrow like Yoda had remembered him doing in life, _it could have just as easily gone the other way._

"Understand you I do not," Yoda said, somewhat confused.

_Anakin could have turned to the dark side_, Qui-Gon explained, _if that had happened we would not be here and there would be destruction beyond even your comprehension.._

Yoda merely frowned, it did not do anyone good to dwell on the might-have-beens.

_It was love that saved him_, Qui-Gon continued, _and love that brought him back._

"An infinite mystery is the Force," Yoda reflected, smiling at Qui-Gon.

Qui-Gon remained there for another moment and then slowly faded away. When he had gone Yoda was still sitting on the floor, still watching the space where Qui-Gon had been, still considering what had happened.

It was here that C-3PO found him, he had reluctantly volunteered to venture out and see if there was still danger. He approached the Jedi Master tentatively.

"Master Yoda?" asked the protocol droid. "Is it safe? Have they gone?"

Yoda only smiled.

hr

In Danta's apartment as the morning breeze started to move the tapestry drapes in the windows, Bail Organa stood next to the Gungan Senator. With surprised eyes they watched the hologram sent the previous night. It was what they had been looking for, _actual_ proof that would mean that right would prevail.

Even Palpatine's supporters could not dispute with that.

hr

The sky was getting light when Obi-Wan entered the Chancellor's office. He had managed to cut through the locked door but stopped when he entered the room. Immediately in front of him was Anakin, kneeling on the floor beside a low couch. And lying on the couch was Padmé.

Obi-Wan didn't have to feel too much into the Force to know she was no longer alive.

With a pained face and tear-stained cheeks, Anakin turned to look at him. He then let go of Padmé's hand and stumbled towards Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan didn't offer any words; in fact he didn't say anything. All he did was put his arm around Anakin's shoulder as he neared. Slowly he led Anakin towards the rear of the office and away from Padmé's body. Light reflected from the orbital mirrors streamed in through the broken window. As morning broke over Coruscant, Anakin stared out over the lightening city with wounded eyes. He too was breaking.

But he wasn't alone.


	33. Epilogue

_Epilogue_

The scar from Renust Nju's lightsaber was still in the middle of the floor, reminiscent of his last stand with Yoda. Anakin wasn't sure if the cleaning droids had not yet found a way to remove it or whether Yoda had kept it there on purpose.

But he didn't mind. In a way, he actually _liked_ it. It gave the Temple Memorial Room a sense of realness rather than all the artificiality the holograms and readouts showed.

Yet even that did not take away the memories. There were still times, even four years after, when he still woke up in the middle of the night with Padmé's name on his lips. She would call to him in his dreams, smile and then slip away before he could talk to her.

At first he had refused to accept Padmé's death. Even months after the fact when there were the Judicial and Senate enquires as well as all the dratted holo-journalists who constantly asked for details. And when Obi-Wan had told him that putting his lightsaber through three cameras was _not_ a good idea Anakin could have choked him. Or even left the Jedi Order, put everything behind him including his memories of Padmé.

Yet it wasn't because of Obi-Wan he had stayed, and it wasn't because of Obi-Wan that he finally accepted the sacrifice that Padmé had made for him. And he had not done this by himself, there had been help.

Anakin smiled.

There had been _a lot_ of help.

The buzz of his comlink made him smile again.

He answered it as he left the room. "Yes?"

"They say our ship is ready now, Master," said a soft female voice.

_Master._ The title still gave him a thrill whenever he heard it, even though it had been the case for six months. And unlike when he had been put on the Council at the end of the Clone Wars, there was nothing political or even bitter about it.

It had actually been quite a surprise, most of all to Anakin himself. The fact that he now had a Padawan learner of his own.

"I'll be there in a moment, Sona," he told her, replacing the comlink back in his pouch.

Sona. Sona Cantari. She had been what had saved him, what had made him stay a Jedi and finally put Padmé's memory in perspective.

"Anakin, wait a moment."

Anakin stopped in his walk to wait for Obi-Wan to catch up. Still on the Council and now with somewhat more grey in his hair than he had had during the Clone Wars. Anakin didn't like that now he was Sona's Master they sometimes walked on different paths, yet he dealt with this in the Jedi way. He _accepted_ it. After all, as Sona had pointed out to him once, there were some things that you just couldn't control.

"Forgot to give you this." Obi-Wan handed Anakin a portable midi-chlorian counter. Much more accurate than the one Qui-Gon had first used on Anakin and able to give a reading in the field. It was still fairly new.

Anakin examined it with a dry smile. "Obi-Wan, I thought you said that the tests were conclusive," he teased.

"They are, they are," Obi-Wan reassured as they walked towards the hangar. "It's just in case you need to be sure."

"Or is this an excuse just to see me off?" Anakin said, the corners of his mouth twitching towards a smile.

"I don't need an excuse, Anakin," his former Master returned. "It's not as if you actually _go_ anywhere very much."

"Well that's all going to change," Anakin said loftily, this was his first mission with Sona and it was very likely there were going to be more.

----------------------------

Sona was sitting in the hatchway of their starship when Anakin and Obi-Wan arrived, swinging her feet above the floor. She got up and walked towards her Master, nodding to Obi-Wan as she handed Anakin a datacard of what she had found.

"Master, I found this information in the archives," she said, somewhat tentatively. "I'm not sure if it will help…"

Obi-Wan could not help but smile as he watched Anakin and Sona talk. They were so different, yet they seemed to compliment each other completely. Sona with her dark hair and eyes often looked serious and worried. Whereas Anakin was none of these things, confidence enveloped him like an aura. They worked together better than even he could have anticipated, Anakin rushing forward like a raging torrent while beside him was Sona, the quiet river of serenity.

And Obi-Wan had to admit that he had nothing to do with this pairing. Oh, there was the fact that Sona had been in his saber-training class and that was how she and Anakin had met. But even if that had not been the case, he figured that the living Force would have found a way to bring them together.

If it hadn't happened…He dismissed the thought as it normally led back to the months after Padmé's death. The months Anakin had spent between an almost remorseless rage and a brooding depression.

"Well, that's it." Anakin closed the datapad and looked at Obi-Wan expectantly. "I'll call you in a few days to let you and the Council know when we're getting back."

"Or," Obi-Wan pointed out dryly, "when you find something else better to do while you're out there."

Anakin looked at him with mock innocence. "Come on, Obi-Wan. _How_ long have you known me?"

"Far too long," Obi-Wan replied, he looked at Sona. "You tell me if he wants to go somewhere else and I'll think of something unpleasant for him to do when he gets back home."

"Like listening to one of Chancellor Organa's speeches?" Sona suggested, grinning wickedly.

Obi-Wan chuckled. "Something like that."

"I will, Master Kenobi," Sona said, bowing her head but still smiling.

With a straight face Anakin steered her around and moved Sona towards the ship. "Now don't give her any ideas," Anakin chided, pointing accusingly at Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan held up his hands innocently. But when Sona was on board he spoke again. "But I mean it," he murmured, "you're not on your own now, Anakin. You can't forget that."

"You won't ever let me," Anakin accused.

The two friends clasped hands, for a moment an invisible pulse travelled from one to the other.

"I guess this is it," Obi-Wan said reluctantly.

"I've been away from you before," Anakin reminded him.

"Not like this," Obi-Wan pointed out.

Anakin shrugged, then walked towards the ship.

"Anakin?"

He stopped for a moment and looked over his shoulder.

"May the Force be with you."

Anakin ducked inside the ship and started to slide the hatch down. "May the Force be with you, Obi-Wan."

----------------------------

Sona was already in the co-pilot's seat when Anakin entered.

"Strapped in?" he asked her, she nodded. "You want to take her out?"

Sona's eyes lit up. "Really?"

Anakin nodded. "Go ahead."

Sona took the controls and guided the ship over the city. It was early morning, the orbital mirrors were only starting to reflect the light, the orange, gold and pink reflected against the buildings.

_Just like the morning Padmé died_, Anakin realised suddenly, _yet she would have loved this, to see the Capital with all the colour and light…_

He was silent as the ship left the atmosphere and entered space.

"I told you I came from Tatooine, didn't I?" he asked Sona suddenly.

"I think you told me at least three or four times," the girl replied. "And now they say there's _another_ Jedi that's been identified there." She cast her mind back to the briefing. "Somewhere near a place called Anchorhead," she looked at Anakin for a moment. "Is that were _you_ came from, Master?"

"Not really," Anakin replied as he entered the co-ordinates, "but I've been there. Ready?"

Sona nodded.

Anakin threw the hyperspace throttle forward and they went on together.


End file.
